LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 

Chap. Copyright No. 

SheilLiZP^-, 



UNiTED STATES OF AMERICA. 



) 



THE 

FOUNDING OF THE KINGDOM. 

A COURSE OF LESSONS FOR ADVANCED SCHOLARS ON THE 
ACTS OF THE APOSTLES. 



' BY THE 

REV. W. HAWKS POTT, Ph.D., 

AUTHOR OF ''LESSONS ON THE LIFE OF THE KING. 



/3 



SECOND EDITION, REVISED 




New York: 
JAMES POTT & CO., Publishers, ^ 
Fourth Avenue and 22D Street. 
1897. 



^^^^^ 



NOTES. 

These lessons are intended to succeed those by the same author on 
" The Life of the King." 

It is not to be desired that the answers should be committed to 
memory, but only read carefully; nor is it wished that the teacher should 
be confined to the questions. They are simply meant to guide the story 
and impress upon the reader the more important facts. These lessons 
have been attempted because the writer has become convinced that 
facts learned apart from their relations are both of little interest and 
worthless. 

The authorities chiefly followed are Abbe Constant Fouard, " St. 
Peter " and " St. Paul "; Ramsay, " The Church in the Roman Empire " 
and "St. Paul, the Traveller and the Roman Citizen"; Mommsen, 
" Provinces of the Roman Empire"; Weizsacker, "The Apostolic Age 
of the Christian Church." The map is a copy of that appearing in the 
first mentioned of Ramsay's works. 



Copyrighted, i8g6, 
by James Pott & Co. 



PART I. 



FIRST BEGINNINGS. 

Time, a.d. 30-33. 
Read Acts i. 

1. Who were the first messengers to whom Christ entrusted 
the founding of His Kingdom ? 

Acts i. 13, 14. They were all simple people whom no one 
else but Christ would have thought capable of doing great things. 

2. How had they been prepared for their work ? 

He Himself had taught them. By beautiful words and 
noble deeds, He had unfolded to them the plan of the Kingdom 
of God. 

3. Had they understood His teaching ? 

Only in part. Their imaginations were so filled with other 
visions of earthly glory. " Wilt Thou," they asked Him, when 
His last message had been delivered to them and He was about 
to return to His Father, " Wilt Thou at this time restore again 
the Kingdom to Israel ? " 

4. Why probably had Christ chosen such simple men ? 
Because they would the better know their need of God, and 

would rely on Him and not on themselves, and so the Spirit 
of God could workthroiigh them. (I. Cor. i. 27, 28, 29.) 

5. What promise did He make them before His ascension ? 
That God's Spirit should descend upon them, that they 

should speak and act with divine power and divine wisdom, and 
courage and strength should be given them to be His messengers. 
(Acts I. 8.) 

6. How did the disciples await the fulfilment of this promise ? 
Waiting and wondering, the little band clung closely to- 
gether. In the city of Jerusalem, hallowed by so many holy 
memories, there was one spot peculiarly sacred to them. It was 



4 



"the upper room," where Christ had spent the last Passover with 
His disciples, where He had given them the great Sacrament and 
where He had appeared to them after His resurrection. There 
they gathered together for prayer, and to remind one another of 
the sayings and doings of their Master. 

7. What step did the Apostles first take ? 

Judas the traitor had perished. There were but eleven 
Apostles now. It seemed to them necessary that a twelfth should 
be appointed. 

8. How did they proceed to choose the new Apostle ? 

The new Apostle must first be a witness, for Christ would 
not return to reign until His messengers had made Him known to 
all His people. The choice was therefore limited to two, for 
of those who had been with Jesus from the day of His baptism 
by John until His ascension, Joseph, surnamed Justus, and Mat- 
thias were esteemed by all most worthy of filling the office vaca- 
ted by the traitor. 

9. How did they decide between these men ? 

They left it to God to decide. *' The upper room " was 
hushed in prayer. The names of the two were written upon tab- 
lets and were placed in the folds of a mantle, which was shaken 
to and fro. The first to fall out was the tablet containing the 
name of Matthias, "and he was numbered with the eleven 
Apostles." 

10. Was this manner of choosing ever repeated ? 

No; the Apostles learned that this was not the wisest way; 
that God woula mark out by unmistakable signs of fitness the 
men who should be appointed for His work. So was it, for ex- 
ample, with St. Paul and St. Barnabas. 

1. What was the field wherein the Apostles were to toil ? 
Jesus had told them that the field was the world. Wher- 
ever man was to be found, there the good news of. the Kingdom 
must be proclaimed. 

2. Did the Apostles at once realize the full extent of their 
mission ? 

No; God in His goodness hid it from them. These men 
had never journeyed beyond the borders of their own country. 



5 



and knew but little of the great world to which they were to 
bring the message. 

3. Why was this best ? 

Had they known, the largeness of their task would only 
have terrified them and paralyzed their energies. Little by lit- 
tle God would open their eyes, and the full vision of the King- 
dom could come only after many strange and sad experiences. 

4. What great power in those days ruled the larger portion of 
the civilized world ? 

Rome. Once an unimportant village of Italy, in a wonder- 
ful way, by victory after victory, it had added dominion to do- 
minion, until it had grown to be the centre of a vast Empire 
surrounding the Mediterranean Sea. 

5. How was this Empire governed ? 

In the days of the Apostles all the power was practically in 
the hands of a single ruler, responsible to no man. He was su- 
preme commander, supreme law-giver, supreme judge. He 
was known as the Emperor. 

6. How did he control his dominions ? 

The Empire was divided into provinces, over each of 
which a governor was placed. These governors were responsi- 
ble to the Emperor and his Senate. Sometimes a native king 
would be allowed to continue his rule over his subjects, but only 
as a vassal of Rome. 

7. How did the Emperors seek to unify the Empire ? 

It was no light task to combine into a firm unity so many 
peoples, different in creeds and customs and prejudices. The 
policy of the Emperors was two-fold. First, colonies of Roman 
citizens were established throughout the Empire, which should 
serve as centres whence Roman ideas and Roman customs might 
spread themselves throughout the surrounding regions. (Eng- 
land has adopted this policy in her great Empire.) Second, the 
rights of Roman citizenship were bestowed upon men of every 
race ; sometimes as a reward of faithful service, sometimes for 
political, sometimes for commercial reasons. This citizenship 
brought many privileges and was highly esteemed. (Our own 
country adopts a similar policy.) 

8. What else did the Emperors seek to do ? 

To establish a great national religion. All other religions 
were recognized, and all other worships allowed, but supreme 



6 



over them all was to be the worship of the Spirit of the Empire, 
incarnate in the Emperors. The high priests of this religion took 
precedence over all other priests. 

9. How was order preserved throughout the Empire ? 

The soldiers of the Emperor preserved order. Along the 
borders of the Empire, and wherever disturbances were in the 
least likely to occur, there were to be seen the eagles of the 
Roman army. 

10. What did this method of government necessitate ? 

A net-work of splendid roads throughout the Empire, over 
which large bodies of men could be rapidly moved. It was along 
these roads that the messengers of the Gospel of Peace would 
make their way. 

Bo* 3» XTbe fftelD (Continued). 

1. Of all the many peoples included in the vast Roman Em- 
pire, which were the most troublesome ? 

The Jews. It was impossible for them to accept the na- 
tional religion the Emperors sought to establish, nor would they 
alter their own peculiar ways and customs and mingle with the 
other races included in the Empire. 

2. Was the Province of Judea in itself of any great impor- 
tance ? 

No ; it possessed no great commercial towns ; there were 
no really good harbors along its coast ; the people were poor, 
nor could the Emperor find there many recruits for his armies. 

3. Why did not Rome at once destroy this troublesome prov- 
ince ? 

Because of the Jews of the Dispersion, as they were called. 
Throughout the whole Empire the Jewish people had spread 
themselves. In almost every large city there was to be found a 
Jewish colony, for wherever there was an opportunity for com- 
merce, there the Jew appeared. Many of these Jews of the Dis- 
persion became immensely rich and powerful. 

4. Separated thus from his native land, did the Jew mingle 
more readily with his neighbors ? 

Perhaps to some slight extent, but as a rule, wherever 
found, the Jew was always a Jew. The Jews lived, where possi- 
ble, in the same quarter of a city. They held firmly to their pe- 



7 



culiar faith and customs and erected their synagogues everywhere. 
Yearly, and sometimes at tremendous sacrifices, they would seek 
to make a pilgrimage to some one of the great national festivals 
at Jerusalem. 

5. What peculiar power did this clannishness give them ? 
The synagogues were news-centres where tidings of what 

was going on in the world were first jeceived. Jewish merchants 
were constantly journeying from town to town, but what they 
saw and what they heard they kept for the ears of their brethren. 
The Judaism of the Dispersion resembled a vast secret society 
with its chapters in every important town. 

6. How did the Jews endeavor to extend their influence? 
They were ever seeking to win to their religion influential 

heathen, both men and women. These converts were called 
proselytes. This was not so difficult an undertaking where faith 
in the old gods was fast passing away. The pure and honest 
lives which the Jews led attracted good men on every side. Their 
efforts met with considerable success. 

7. What did the Jews demand of their converts ? 

There were various degrees of proselytism. The highest 
was attained when the convert became circumcised and agreed to 
observe all the Jewish laws and customs. But this was not al- 
ways required, and many proselytes were accepted, who, for rea- 
sons of policy, were allowed to conceal from the world their par- 
tial conversion. The Jews had friends everywhere, and were 
rapidly building up an empire within the Empire. 

8. How were the Jews regarded throughout the Empire ? 
The people affected to despise them because of their pe- 
culiarities, but really dreaded them. They had immense influ- 
ence with the magistrates of the cities, but less with the higher 
officials. In some cities they were so numerous and powerful 
that they were allowed to have their own magistrates and govern 
themselves in their own way. The Emperors made many conces- 
sions to them, and they were permitted to collect their own taxes 
and send them to Jerusalem for the support of the Temple. 

9. How did their power finally terminate ? 

With the destruction of Jerusalem, which began in the 
year 70. The Emperors could no longer allow the growing 
power of these rivals. 

10. Where would the Apostles naturally begin their labors ? 



8 



In their own great city and amongst their own countrymen. 
Jerusalem, indeed, was a most fitting place for this beginning — 
Jerusalem with its flowing and ebbing tide of pilgrims. What 
was proclaimed there was, as it were, proclaimed " upon the 
housetop." 

Bo. 4. Zbc Great UxoakcninQ. 

Read Acts ii. to 41. 

1. What great feast of the Jews occurred fifty days after the 
Passover ? 

The Feast of Pentecost (Pentecost means fifty). At the 
Passover the first fruits of the harvest were offered. Pentecost 
marked the conclusion of the wheat harvest. It was a Jewish 
Thanksgiving Day, an occasion of great joy. In the time of the 
Apostles it was also believed that it was upon this day that God gave 
the Law to Moses. Another harvest was now to begin and the 
new law of love to be proclaimed. 

2. How did devout Jews prepare for this feast ? 

They spent the night previous in prayer and meditation, 
reciting appropriate Psalms and reading from the Law and the 
Prophets. 

3. What transpired on the morning of Pentecost in the " upper 
room " ? 

Probably the Apostles and their companions had thus spent 
the night in devotions. Morning was come. But it was not the 
morning light that filled the room where they knelt in prayer, but 
a strange appearance as of tongues of fire resting on the heads of 
each one of them. And it was not the morning wind that entered 
in at the open windows, but a power, mighty, irresistible, that made 
the building to tremble. 

4. What change was wrought in the disciples ? 

The fire that they had seen was but a sign of the fire of en- 
thusiasm which was kindled in their souls. The power that had 
manifested itself seems to have entered into and possessed them. 

5. What did they do ? 

Their new joy and enthusiasm would not let them remain 
longer in the little upper room. They must go forth and share 
their gladness with others. The streets of the city were always 
thronged at the festivals. To whoever would stop to listen they 



9 



spoke. Some laughed and said: These wretched people are already 
drunken so early in the morning. Others wondered what it could 
all mean. Especially were they startled by the fact that these 
seemingly ignorant men spoke now to this one, now to that, 
in the language of their native land. Soon the streets were 
crowded with people. Then St. Peter ascended the staircase 
that ran up the outside of the building where the wonder had 
taken place, and, when silence was obtained, preached the first 
Christian sermon. 

6. What was the substance of this sermon ? 

He told them that it was not wine that had filled their 
hearts with gladness, but the power of God's Spirit, which the 
prophets had foretold and Christ had promised. He reminded 
them of Jesus whom many of them perhaps had known and seen, 
and of His cruel death. He announced to them His resurrec- 
tion, whereby God had marked Him out as the Messiah. He 
pleaded with them not to resist the appeal which God on this day 
was making. Save yourselves," he cried, "out of the midst of 
this blind and foolish generation that is daring to defy God." 

7. What was the result of this sermon ? 

The hearts of his listeners were touched and their con- 
sciences awakened. " What shall we do ? " they cried out. " What 
shall we do to be saved ? " 

8. What was St. Peter's answer ? 

He bade them repent and by baptism acknowledge them- 
selves Christ's disciples. He told them that the same power of 
God which they had seen manifested that day would also possess 
and transform them. " And the same day there were added to 
the church about three thousand souls." 

9. Was the gift of languages a permanent possession of the 
Apostles ? 

No; and there are no indications that this power was ever 
given them again. It was but a sign that accompanied the first 
outpouring of God's Spirit — a sign that the Gospel was meant for 
all the world. 

10. On what day do we commemorate this event ? 

On Whitsunday, which some suppose to mean Wisdom 
Sunday. 



lO 

IFlo. 5, %n^inQ tbe ffounDations* 

Read Acts ii. 41 to iv. 32. 

1. After the great awakening, how did the Church continue 
its work ? 

The enthusiasm still glowed in the hearts of the disciples, 
and they gladly made use of every opportunity to teach and help, 
but their work was carried on quietly and without attracting 
especial notice. 

2. Were the first Christians readily to be distinguished from 
the Jews? 

Only by their gladness. They continued their various oc- 
cupations as formerly. They frequented the Temple courts and 
were present at the daily sacrifices. To those who knew not the 
secret of their lives, they must have seemed especially devout 
Jews, strangely contented and happy. 

3. What custom did they maintain among themselves ? 
When the day's work was over, they would gather in one 

another's homes, and, after the evening meal, the bread would be 
broken and the wine partaken of in memory of Jesus. They 
seem to have believed that their Master was an unseen guest at 
these feasts. 

4. What event brought the Christians again into prominence ? 
A lame man had asked for alms of the Apostles, St. Peter 

and St. John, as they were entering the Temple by the splendid 
gate of Corinthian bronze known as *' The Beautiful." They 
could not give him money, but remembering the promise of 
Christ and the wonderful works God had wrought by Him, St. 
Peter took the poor man by the hand and bade him, in the name 
of the Lord Jesus, arise and walk. 

5. What was the result.? 

St. Peter's faith in God was rewarded, and the man's ail- 
ment was healed. His noisy demonstrations immediately drew 
a crowd about the Apostles, to whom he clung gratefully. It 
was in that portion of the Temple known as Solomon's Porch, 
where Jesus often had taught, that the multitude gathered. 
Taking the wonder that had been wrought as his text, Peter 
again preached to the people about Jesus, whom God had shown 
to be the promised Christ in that He had raised Him from the 
grave ; and again many were convinced. 



II 



6. What happened while he was yet speaking ? 

Some of the priests and the Temple guards, attracted by 
the clamor, drew nigh and arrested the Apostles. It being late 
in the afternoon, they were put in prison to be examined on the 
following day before the council. 

7. What transpired at this examination ? 

With undaunted courage the Apostles preached Jesus even 
to the men who had been His 'murderers. Such was the 
change that the Day of Pentecost had wrought in these followers 
of Christ, who had all forsaken Him at His trial. The council 
was greatly impressed and " took knowledge of them that they 
had been with Jesus." 

8. What action did the council take ? 

They could not deny that a great miracle had been wrought ; 
they did not dare to punish the Apostles for having wrought it ; 
so they could only try to terrify them with threats. They must 
no longer preach about Christ. 

9. Did this avail ? 

No; the Apostles only answered bravely that they must 
hearken to God and not to man, and God had commanded them 
to preach. And then they went back to their friends and all 
united in a prayer that God would make them even braver and 
more fearless now that danger was come. 
10. Was their prayer answered ? 

Again the same power was manifested as on the Day of 
Pentecost, and the building trembled where they knelt, and the 
great enthusiasm once more filled their souls. 

IRo^ 6. Ube ffirst Bnemtes. 

Read Acts v. 14 to vi. 

I. How did the majority of the Jews probably now regard 
Jesus 1 

After they had voted for His crucifixion and had witnessed 
His tragic death, a reaction must have set in in His favor. They 
missed the kind friend and helpful teacher, once so familiar a 
figure in the streets of their city, and many wondered if they had 
done wisely in suffering themselves to be misled by their rulers, 
to seek His destruction. 



12 



2. How would many of the Jews therefore regard the 
Apostles ? 

They were glad to hear these men who spoke to them of 
Jesus, who could assure them that He was not dead but living. 
They were glad to see the same wonderful works of mercy and 
love wrought in His name by their hands. This accounts, to 
some extent at least, for the rapid growth of the Church in the 
first days of its existence. 

3. Who then were the first enemies of the Church ? 

The same men who had been the enemies of Christ — the 
priests, the scribes and Pharisees. The work thej^. had begun 
they could not leave unfinished. They had slain Jesus. To per- 
mit His Apostles to carry on His work was to admit that they 
had been in error. 

4. Of these, who were the bitterest in their enmity ? 

Those who held Sadducean views, for the Sadducees 
claimed that there was no life after death. The preaching of the 
resurrection was therefore especially exasperating to them. 

5. What measures did they take to silence the Apostles ? 
They proceeded to carry out their threats and arrested 

the twelve Apostles and put them in the common prison. If they 
could silence these men, it were an easy matter to deal with the 
others. 

6. How were their plans thwarted ? 

By the fearless courage of the Apostles. In some strange 
way they were delivered from prison, bat they made no effort to 
escape from their enemies, and when the council assembled in 
the morning it was reported to them that their prisoners, in 
startling defiance of their commands, were preaching the Gospel 
they hated to excited throngs in the porticos of the very Temple 
itself. 

7. What did they then do ? 

They sent their officers to bring the Apostles, with as little 
violence as possible, into their presence, for they feared the con- 
sequences of a tumult and the interference of the Roman power. 

8. Did the Apostles lose heart when in their presence ? 

No; when examined as to their disobedience, they made 
the same bold reply as before, that in preaching Jesus they were 
obeying God, and God they would obey, come what might. They 



13 



told, too, their would-be judges, that it was they who were dis- 
obedient, for in slaying the Christ they had defied God. 
9. What was the consequence of this boldness? 

Many were for putting the Apostles immediately to death, 
but Gamaliel, a Pharisee of great influence, saved them. He re- 
minded his fellow-judges how there had been other rebellions 
against their authority, and how in the end, without violence on 
their part, they had come to nought. 'He counselled delay. "If 
this new enthusiasm be not of God, it will soon make its own 
mistakes and bring down the wrath of Rome upon it. If it be of 
God, dare we fight against Him ? It were best to wait and see." 
Convinced, by Gamaliel's speech, that they might expect only a 
half-hearted support from the Pharisees, the priests feared to 
proceed to extreme measures, so they were fain to content them- 
selves with disgracing the Apostles by a public flogging, and then, 
with renewed threats, they let them go. 

10. What were the consequences of this eff"ort of the priests ? 

The courage of the Apostles, their evident joy in sufi^ering 
shame for Jesus' sake, only attracted the people more strongly 
towards them. Besides, in inflicting upon such utter defiance no 
severer punishment than scourging, often employed for petty of- 
fences, the rulers had shown a pitiful weakness that could only 
proceed from uncertainty. There were great accessions to the 
Church in those days and even some of the priests acknowledged 
Christ. 

1Flo, 7. Ube ffirst BifTiculties. 

Read Acts ii. 44, 45; Acts iv. 34 to v.; Acts vi. i to 7. 

1. What organization did the Church have in its infancy ? 
There could have been but little. Of the faithful few that 

gathered in the " upper room " after the Ascension the Apostles 
were the natural leaders, and among the Apostles the impetuous 
character of St. Peter made him the ruling spirit. As the 
Church grew, the management of all its affairs continued at first 
in the Apostles' hands. 

2. How did this at last become impossible 1 

There was an unusual number of poor people in Jerusalem. 
It was not a great commercial city, and enterprising Jews would 
seek their fortunes elsewhere. Jews who loved their religion 
more than all else would remain and endure all manner of hard- 



14 

ships. Such of the poor as joined the Church must be provided 
for. The Apostles discovered that they could not properly min- 
ister to the poor, without neglecting opportunities of preaching. 

3. What circumstance especially revealed this to them ? 
Some women, widows, not natives of Jerusalem, thought 

that in the distribution of charity a preference was being shown 
for those who had lived all their lives in the city. They com- 
plained and their complaint reached the Apostles' ears. 

4. What step did they at once take ? 

They called the brethren together and begged them to se- 
lect seven men, honest, good business men and yet full of divine 
enthusiasm, who might administer the charities of the Church. 

5. What men were chosen ? 

Seven men, who were all, to judge from their Grecian 
names, Jews of the Dispersion, that is Jews of like description 
with the women who had murmured, and one of them was a 
proselyte. Their names were Stephen, Philip, Prochorus, Nica- 
nor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas. Upon them, after prayer, 
the Apostles laid their hands, thus appointing them to their work. 
These men are usually called the Seven Deacons. 

6. Whence came the means for this charity ? 

It was the free gift of those who were rich. Many sold 
their possessions and brought the money and laid it at the Apos- 
tles' feet. There was a general willingness to share with one an- 
other the blessings God had bestowed. 

7. What man was especially generous? 

Joses, a rich Jew of the tribe of Levi, sold all his estate in 
the Island of Cyprus and gave the proceeds to the Church. This 
noble deed was done in so noble a spirit that the Apostles named 
him ''Barnabas/' the "son of consolation." 

8. What two Jews attempted to gain credit for being more 
generous than they really were ? 

A man named Ananias and his wife Sapphira. They brought 
a portion of their wealth to the Apostles pretending that it was their 
all, and that they were as generous as Barnabas had been, but 
God punished them, and they died with the lie on their lips. 

9. What great danger had the Church to fear from its rapid 
growth : 

When it became evident that the old enemies of Christ 
were powerless in the presence of His Church, many would un- 



15 



doubtedly join its ranks who neither fully understood the teach- 
ing of Jesus nor the mission of His disciples. There was a dan- 
ger therefore of the Church being absorbed in Judaism, and of its 
life being suffocated in the close atmosphere of narrow Jewish 
prejudice. 

lo. What great man seems to have foreseen this danger ? 

St. Stephen, one of the Seven Deacons. To avert it, he 
sacrificed his life. 

1Ro» S. first IReptevv^ 

1. Before the Day of Pentecost what conception did the 
Apostles have of the Kingdom of Christ ? 

2. What position did the Jews occupy in the Roman Empire ? 

3. Describe what happened on the Day of Pentecost ? 

4. What practice did the Christians continue daily amongst 
themselves } 

5. Tell the story of the first miracle. 

6. Tell the story of the first trial. 

7. Tell the story of the second trial. 

8. Why did the Apostles appoint the Seven Deacons ? 

9. Who was St. Barnabas ? 

10. What danger did St. Stephen seek to avert ? 



PART II. 

THE DYING OF THE SEED. 

Time, a.d. 33-46. 

IR0, 9» Ube Second Bwaf^emna* 

Read Acts vi. 9 toviii. 

1. Did the deacons merely administer to the poor ? 

No; whenever opportunity offered they, too, preached the 
Gospel, and one of them, St. Stephen, soon became famous for 
his eloquence. 

2. Where did he preach ? 

Chiefly in those synagogues in Jerusalem which were fre- 
quented by Jews of the Dispersion. 

3. What was the peculiar nature of his preaching ? 



i6 

Probably he taught that the time was now come when the 
Church had outgrown the garment of Judaism. The old order 
was passing away ; a new order was beginning. The Church did 
not belong to the Jews only, nor could it confine its work to them. 
It could no longer remain huddled about the Temple, it must 
awake and go forth to conquer the world. A little while and 
the Temple and its ceremonies would be a thing of the past, 
but the Kingdom of Christ would last forever. 

4. How was this novel preaching received ? 

It aroused the most intense anger. The Jew, proud of 
the history of his nation and believing in its final triumph over 
its enemies, would not listen to such teaching. The Pharisees, 
who had hitherto, when the matter in dispute was only the res- 
urrection, been but lukewarm opponents, now became even more 
bitter than the priests. What the Pharisees undertook was not 
likely to end in mere threats. Further, it now became possible 
by an appeal to their patriotism to turn the mass of the people 
against the Church. St. Stephen's clear and startling announce- 
ment of the truth was indeed a second awakening both for 
the Church and its enemies. 

5. What were the consequences of this boldness for himself ? 
He was seized and brought before the Sanhedrin for trial. 

He was accused of blasphemy against Moses and against God. 
False witnesses revived the old charge that had been used with 
such fatal effect against Jesus. They said that St. Stephen, too, 
had spoken against the Temple and had foretold its destruction 
by the Prophet of Nazareth. "Are these things so ? " said the 
high priest. 

6. What was Stephen's answer ? 

He was not in the least afraid. His face was so grand and 
his bearing so noble, as he stood there in the presence of his ac- 
cusers, that men said afterwards he had seemed to them as an 
angel. Calmly and dispassionately he reviews the history of their 
nation — that history of which they were so proud. He ventures 
to tell them that really it was a history to weep over. Again and 
again had God shown them especial kindness, but they had 
always been cruel, blind, and obstinate. It was only through 
much tribulation that God's messengers had dragged them on 
from truth to truth. At last, when, notwithstanding their folly, 
the promised land was reached and the great Temple was built, 



17 



they were mad enough to believe that they owned God, and that 
He must dwell forever in that little shrine of stone and timber 
they had built for Him — the God whose throne was Heaven and 
earth His footstool. 

7. With what glowing words did St. Stephen conclude ? 
Acts vii. 51-53. 

8. How did his words affect his hearers ? 

They ground their teeth together in rage as they listened. 
While he was still speaking, they started from their seats to seize 
him. But he, gazing up towards Heaven, heeded them not. He 
was as one in a trance. " Behold, I see the heavens opened," he 
murmured, " and the Son of Man standing on the right hand of 
God." Blasphemy ! blasphemy ! " yelled his enemies. Stone 
the blasphemer ! " and putting their fingers in their ears lest 
they might hear him further, they crowded around him, and, 
pushing and dragging him out of the council chamber, they 
hurried him through the streets of the city, and forth by a gate 
near to which probably repairs were being made in the city wall. 

9. What was the ending of this brave life ? 

His enraged enemies stoned Stephen to death. Lord 
Jesus, receive my spirit," he said, as he fell beneath the shower of 
stones. And then struggling to his knees he prayed God to for- 
give his enemies: *' Lord, lay not this sin to their charge." '"And 
when he had said this he fell asleep." 

10. Could they bury the truth that St. Stephen taught, beneath 
their stones ? 

No ; truth is of God, and therefore cannot be destroyed. 
Near the place where St. Stephen met his death stood a young man, 
fragile in build, but full of nervous energy. At his feet lay the 
garments of those who were stoning the martyr. He v/as willing 
to hold himself responsible for the wild work that was going on. 
This was Saul of Tarsus, a zealous Pharisee. He could never 
forget what he had seen and heard that day, and this very leader 
of the persecutors of St. Stephen was afterwards to become him- 
self an Apostle, and to live and die for the truth which St. Ste- 
phen proclaimed. 



i8 

IRo. \0. Ubc Great persecutor* 

Read Acts ix. i to 9. 

1. Who now became the leader of the party bent upon de- 
stroying the Christian Church ? 

This same zealous Pharisee who had watched St. Stephen's 
death, Saul of Tarsus. He seems to have sought to efface the 
recollection of what he had seen, by throwing himself, heart and 
soul, into the task of exterminating the Church. 

2. What do we know of this man ? 

His parents were probably well-to-do people of the city of 
Tarsus, in Cilicia. His father was a devout Jew and a Pharisee. 
As such, he had perhaps toiled zealously in making converts to 
his faith, and he, too, as others, indulged in the hope that the 
Jewish religion would yet conquer the world. He educated his 
son to love the Law and observe it strictly, and doubtless sought 
to inspire him with his own longings. He had sent him to Jerusa- 
lem to study at the feet of Gamaliel, the greatest and broadest- 
minded Pharisee of his times. When Saul became a Christian, 
however, his family seem to have cast him off and never forgiven 
him. 

3. What great privilege did Saul's father possess ? 

He was a Roman citizen, although a Jew. How he had 
acquired this honor, whether by purchase or as a reward for his 
services, we cannot tell. Saul therefore by birth was entitled to 
all the privileges of a citizen of Rome. 

4. Had Saul ever seen Jesus ? 

No ; his visits to Jerusalem had never occurred when 
Jesus was in the city. He knew only by hearsay of the great 
events that had happened, and he would not be likely to get a 
very favorable report of Christ from his Pharisee friends. 

5. How would he regard the Christian Church ? 

As the one great obstacle to the fulfilment of the dream of 
every devout Israelite. If Judaism were to be divided against 
itself, how ever would it extend its influence and conquer the 
world ? These wretched fanatics, who were preaching such new 
and dangerous doctrine, must be silenced ere the mischief spread. 
Saul was too much of a man to be content with Gamaliel's policy 
of delay He thought that he was but doing God service when 
he endeavored to suppress the preaching of the Gospel. 



19 



6. Where did he begin his work ? 

In Jerusalem, the headquarters of the Church. The Chris- 
tians soon discovered that they were dealing with no timid priest, 
actuated by motives of self-interest, but with an honest man who 
believed in the righteousness of his task. Saul simply made 
havoc of the Church, and the prisons were crowded with his 
victims. 

7. When he thought he had silenced the Church at Jerusalem, 
where did he next seek to direct his energies ? 

In the city of Damascus there was a large Jewish colony. 
Many of these Jews seem to have become Christians. Saul pro- 
cured from the high priest letters of introduction to the rulers 
of the Damascus synagogues, and then journeyed forth to con- 
quer the Church in Damascus as he thought he had conquered 
that in Jerusalem. 

8. As he rode on his way, what thoughts probably filled 
his mind ? 

Now that the strain and excitement were over for awhile 
and he had time to think many sad pictures must have crowded 
in upon him of the ruin he had wrought. Foremost among them 
would be the face of the dying martyr as he prayed for his ene- 
mies; and Saul must have wondered whether he had indeed been 
doing God service in inflicting so much misery upon men and 
women so brave, so patient, whose only crime was their faith. 

9. What happened about mid-day ? 

They were nearing Damascus. The beautiful white city, 
in the midst of its gardens, the Eye of the East, as it was called, 
was already visible. They were looking about for some shaded 
place where they might rest till the noon day heat was past, en- 
tering the city in the cool of the evening, when life returned to 
its streets. Suddenly there shone from Heaven a light above the 
brightness of the sun. Saul was blinded by its intensity. His 
frightened horse threw him, and he lay prostrate, helpless, upon 
the ground. Then he heard distinctly a voice saying to him, 
"Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?" "Who art thou. 
Lord ? " he asked. " I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest. Thy 
rebellion is as foolish as that of the senseless beast who kicks 
against its driver's goad." " What wilt thou have me to do ? " 
asked the blind man. ''Arise, and go into the city, and it shall 



20 



be told thee what thou must do," was the answer ; and then the 
voice was still. 

lo. How had his attendants fared ? 

They, too, had seen the light and it had overwhelmed 
them with fear. Some thought they had heard a voice, some 
not, but all felt that it was God who had hindered them in their 
journey. Taking their blind leader by the hand, they led him 
into the city. The streets were almost deserted in the early 
afternoon, so that, all unnoticed and unquestioned, Saul succeeded 
in reaching the home of a man named Judas, where he intended 
lodging. 

Mo. !!♦ Ube Great ipersecutor (ContinueC))* 

Read Acts ix. 9 to 31. 

1. Where was this house of Judas situated ? 

On the great broad street of Damascus, called " Straight." 
Judas must have been a wealthy man to have had his residence 
there. 

2. Did Saul avail himself of its comforts ? 

No; alone in a darkened room he fasted and prayed. His 
kind host undoubtedly sought to help him, but Saul only asked 
to be alone. He could not speak yet to any one of what had 
happened — not till the blindness was gone and God had shown 
him his path. 

3. What strange experience did another man have at this 
time in that same city of Damascus ? 

Ananias, a leader of the Church of Damascus, when pray- 
ing, saw the Lord in a vision. He was commanded to go to Saul 
and help him. 

4. Was he willing to go ? 

No ; at first he shrank from the task. The fame of the 
great persecutor had preceded him, and the Christians at Damas- 
cus were awaiting his coming in terror. But when the command 
was repeated and he was told that Saul was now conquered by 
Christ, Ananias hesitated no longer. 

5. What did Ananias do for Saul ? 

When he reached the stately dwelling of Judas he was 
probably told by the warder that Saul, the guest, would see no 
man. But Ananias was urgent, and when the news was brought 



21 



to Saul of his coming, the servant was told to admit him at once. 
Saul had been prepared by a vision for this visit. Ananias en- 
tered the darkened room and groped his way to where Saul knelt 
in silent prayer. ''Brother Saul," he said, as he laid his hands 
gently upon his head, The Lord Jesus, who appeared unto thee, 
hath sent me that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled 
with the Holy Ghost." 

6. What happened while Ananias was speaking ? 

Sight came back to Saul's eyes, light shone in upon his 
soul, and he was baptized and surrendered himself to Jesus. 

7. Whither did Saul go at once ? 

He left the city. He was very weak after the stirring ex- 
periences through which he had passed. He tells us in his let- 
ter, written some time afterwards to the Christian Church he had 
founded in Galatia, that he spent nearly three years in retirement 
in Arabia. He must needs prepare himself for the great sacri- 
fice that he would make — the sacrifice of home, of friends, of 
ambition. It was not easy for the proud Pharisee to take his 
position in the ranks of the despised followers of Jesus. 

8. When strength and courage were restored, where did he 
begin his work ? 

In Damascus. He, too, preached as he had heard St. 
Stephen preach. To him, too. was the gift of eloquence given, 
but the Jews, who once courted him as a friend, now hated him 
as a traitor. The brethren urged his departure. He barely es- 
caped with his life. The gates of the city were watched, and 
from the window of a house built into the wall he was let down 
in a basket. 

9. Whither did he then go ? 

Back to Jerusalem — but, alas, even there he could not stay. 
The Christians remembered too vividly all the hardships they 
had endured at his hands. Only the noble-hearted St. Barnabas 
befriended him. He brought him to St. Peter and St. James, the 
only two Apostles then in the city. Even they were powerless to 
overcome the prejudice against him, and were compelled to ad- 
vise his retiring for the present to his home in Tarsus. 
10. What must this have meant to Saul ? 

These were probably the saddest days in his life. He had 
given up everything for the sake of Christ, and was longing to do 
His work, but now it seemed as if there was no room for him in 



22 



the Church. Saul, the persecutor, was wanted nowhere, even 
though he had become Saul, the zealous Christian. Then, too, 
his home-coming must have added to his sorrow. There could 
have been no welcome in a home such as Saul's had been, for a 
son who had joined the Christian sect. Saul's family seems to 
have forsaken him. 



IFlo* 12. XTbe IResuIts ot tbe persecution. 

Read Acts viii. i to 26. 

1. How did the persecution under Saul affect the growth of 
the Church in Jerusalem ? 

For the time being it ceased to grow, perhaps it even lost 
in numbers, as many who had joined the Church in its palmier 
days would readily be persuaded by Saul to forsake Christ. 

2. What step did many of the Christians take ? 

Those who could left the city, and retired to the smaller 
towns and villages until the storm should blow over. 

3. What results had this for the Church ? 

Wherever the Christians went they preached the Gospel. 
Thus Saul had but scattered the fire which he had hoped to ex- 
tinguish. The persecution was only the means of spreading the 
Gospel. Through Samaria and Phoenicia, northward even to 
Antioch, the good news was passed along, and little fires of zeal 
and faith were kindled throughout the whole of Palestine. 

4. Who was it that brought the Gospel to Samaria ? 

The Deacon Philip, one of the Seven whom the Apostles 
had appointed to help them in their ministry. He found eager 
listeners. The Samaritans had not forgotten Jesus (St. John iv.) 
and gladly heard the good news of His resurrection. Many were 
baptized. 

5. Who sought to resist St. Philip ? 

One Simon the Magician, a sorcerer of no little skill and 
experience, who, before St. Philip's coming, had deceived the 
people and grown rich at their expense ; but the struggle was not 
of long continuance, and Simon, soon fearing that he might other- 
wise lose all the influence he had acquired over the Samaritans, 
pretended that he himself was convinced, and asked to be bap- 
tized. 



23 



6. What step did St. Philip take as he saw the success of his 
preaching ? 

In order to bring the little church that he was forming into 
close connection with the mother Church at Jerusalem, he sent 
to the Apostles for their assistance. 

7. Who came to Samaria, and what act did they perform ? 
The Apostles St. Peter and St John. When they reached 

the village where St. Philip was staying, news was straightway 
sent to all the believers appointing a place of meeting. Probably 
in some field they gathered, and then, after prayer, the Apostles 
passed to and fro amongst the kneeling people, and laid their 
hands upon their heads and prayed that they might receive the 
Holy Ghost. 

8. What was the significance of this act, and what rite of the 
Church is derived from it ? 

It meant that the Church formed in Samaria was not to be 
a separate unit, but through the Apostles was to be brought into 
connection with the one Church that Jesus had founded. It 
meant, too, that the Samaritans who had hitherto been listeners 
and scholars of St. Philip were now consecrated to a life of active 
service in the Church of Christ. The rite of Confirmation, perhaps 
derived from this incident, has precisely the same significance. 

9. Did this become a usual mode of procedure on the Apos- 
tles* part ? 

Probably it did. To Antioch, where a church in like man- 
ner had been formed, St. Barnabas was sent by the Apostles to 
perform a similar task. 

10. What noteworthy incident occurred at the Confirmation in 
Samaria ? 

Simon the Magician, observing the joy and gladness of the 
believers as they rose from their knees after the laying on of 
hands, drew St. Peter aside and offered him money if he would 
show him how thus to affect the people. But St. Peter rebuked 
him sternly. Only the earnest can be benefited by Confirmation. 

no. 13. Zbc ffurtbet Growtb ot tbe (Tburcb* 

Read Acts viii. 26 to ix., 31, to xi. 
I. What other mission did Philip accomplish ? 

The treasurer of the Queen of Ethiopia (called Candace as 
the rulers of Egypt were called Pharaoh), a proselyte of Juda- 



24 



ism, was returning from Jerusalem where he had gone to worship 
at the Temple. Riding in a chariot he had chosen the unfre- 
quented road that led from Jerusalem to Gaza — a road partially 
flagged, and, therefore, better for vehicles, but not much used 
by foot-farers or men on horseback. There St. Philip, divinely 
guided, overtook him. The Ethiopian was reading Isaiah liii., 
but reading it without understanding. St. Philip revealed to him 
its meaning and told him of Jesus. The treasurer was baptized 
and returned to his own country a Christian. Many like instances 
were probably constantly occurring. Thus was the Gospel 
spread. 

2. How did the first persecution come to an end ? 

Caius Caligula, the successor of the Emperor Tiberius, was 
determined that all the world should worship him as a god. He 
would know no exception. He commanded, therefore, that his 
statue should be placed in the Temple in the Holy of Holies. 
The terror caused by this decree stayed the hands of the per- 
secutors. Fortunately, Herod Agrippa, a grandson of Herod the 
Great, persuaded Caligula to withdraw his command. Otherwise 
Judea would have been deluged with blood, for the Jews would 
never have submitted. 

3. How did St. Peter make use of the interval of peace ? 

In visiting all the churches which had been formed in the 
smaller towns of Palestine during the great persecution, and prob- 
ably confirming them. 

4. What incident occurred during his stay at Joppa ? 

He was lodging in the house of Simon the Tanner. Simon, 
because of his handling the skins of dead beasts, would have 
been considered an unfit companion by a strict Jew, but St. 
Peter was at least above such childish prejudices. It was mid- 
day and he had ascended to the house-top to pray. Joppa was 
a seaport town built on the side of a hill. Thus from where St. 
Peter knelt he could overlook the shining waters of the Mediter- 
ranean. Perhaps he was thinking of the world that lay beyond 
that sea, with its many strange peoples and wondering if the 
Word of God would ever reach them. While he prayed he fell 
into a trance and saw a vision. 

5. What was his vision ? 

A great cloth seemed to descend from the blue sky above 
him, knotted together at the four corners and held by invisible 



25 



hands. Upon the house-top it rested, and when it was opened 
up before him, behold, it contained such beasts and birds and 
reptiles as he had been taught in his childhood to consider un- 
clean and unfit to be the food of a Jew. But a voice said to 
him, "Rise, Peter, kill and eat." When he protested vigorously, 
the voice answered, "What God hath cleansed that call not thou 
common/' This was repeated three times and then St. Peter 
awoke from his trance. 

6. What did he find when he awoke ? 

A servant was come to call him, not merely to tell him that 
the mid-day meal was ready, but that three men, messengers 
from one Cornelius, a centurion of Caesarea, were waiting to see 
him. And it seemed to him as if God's Spirit bade him to place 
himself at the service of these men. 

7. Who was this Cornelius, and why had he sent these messen- 
gers ? 

He was a Roman soldier, who, living amongst the Jews, 
had learned to believe in their God and to worship Him. He 
was noted for his generosity and was much beloved by his ser- 
vants, many of whom he had persuaded to his way of thinking. 
Perhaps he was that centurion of Capernaum, of similar charac- 
ter, whose faithful servant Christ healed. At any rate he seems 
to have known of Christ. He, too, had seen a vision and had 
been commanded to send for St. Peter, who would show him 
what things he must do. Therefore had he despatched his mes- 
sengers. 

8. Did St. Peter go with these men ? 

Yes, on the morrow, and he wisely took with him some of 
the brethren from Joppa. So strange a thing was it yet for a 
Jew to enter a Gentile's house, that he thought it best to take 
witnesses with him. 

9. When he entered the home of Cornelius what happened ? 
Cornelius was so rejoiced that he prostrated himself be- 
fore him, but St. Peter would not have this. Stand up," he 
said, " I am only a man as thyself." Then he preached to Cor- 
nelius and those of his friends and servants who were gathered 
in his house. As he preached the signs of the presence of the 
Holy Spirit became evident in the joy and enthusiasm of his 
listeners. St. Peter could not now refuse to baptize them, and 



26 



so these men, Gentiles as they were, were admitted to the 
Church. 

lo. How did the Church at Jerusalem receive this news? 

Some were scandalized; they still clung to their old Jew- 
ish prejudices. It seemed shocking that a Jew should enter an 
uncircumcised Gentile's house and abide with him. But when 
they learned the circumstances that had led to St. Peter's jour- 
ney, they could not but confess that he had acted rightly. They 
were not, however, yet ready to admit that the distinction be- 
tween Jew and Gentile was forever done away in Christ. 

Bo. 14. XTbe Second persecution (H.B. 42-44). 

Read Acts xii. i to 24. 

1. Who was the last King of the Jews ? 

Herod Agrippa I., grandson of Herod the Great. He had 
resided at Rome during the reign of the Emperor Tiberius, a 
king without a kingdom. For his loyalty to the cause of Calig- 
ula he had suffered imprisonment. When the latter became 
Emperor, to show his friendship for Agrippa, he gradually re- 
stored to him in large part the dominions of his grandfather, 
which during the interval had been directly under Roman rule. 
Finally upon the accession of Claudius to the throne, his domin- 
ions were made as wide as those of Herod the Great had been. 

2. What sort of a king was this Agrippa.? 

Though really cruel and only fond of splendor, he was wise 
and politic. He knew well the people whom he was sent to gov- 
ern. He took up his residence in Jerusalem, did much for the 
city and the Temple, and to all appearances lived as a devout 
Jew. He was therefore at first exceedingly popular. 

3. What work did he undertake in order the more to please 
the Jews ? 

To destroy the Christian Church, which, during the inter- 
val of calm, had again grown so powerful. This persecution be- 
gan about the year 42. 

4. Who was the first victim } 

St. James, the son of Zebedee, the brother of St. John, was 
beheaded. This man is not to be confounded with the St. James 
known as " the Lord's brother," who wrote the Epistle bearing his 



27 



name and who afterwards played an important part in the his- 
tory of the Church. 

5. Whom next did he seek to destroy? 

St. Peter was seized and thrown into prison. He was care- 
fully guarded. The Passover was nigh at hand and it was the 
King's intention immediately after the Passover, while the city 
was still thronged with Jews from .distant lands, to manifest his 
zeal for Judaism by putting St. Peter to death. 

6. How was his plan frustrated? 

Four companies of four soldiers each were detailed to guard 
the prisoner; to two soldiers he was chained while one watched 
before the door of the prison and another at the great gate which 
led from the prison court out into the street. Escape seemed 
impossible, and yet God delivered him. 

7. What was the manner of the deliverance ? 

Some time between three and six in the morning, St. Peter 
was waked by some one gently touching him. He opened his eyes, 
and the prison was filled with light. Beside him stood a stranger, 
who bade him gird on his sandals and cast his cloak about him and 
arise and follow him. The chains that held the prisoner parted of 
themselves. The guards lay wrapt in sleep. Forth they has- 
tened, the gates opening noiselessly before them. Down one 
street the stranger led him and then was gone. 

8. What did St. Peter think ? 

He had fancied first that it was all a dream and that he 
would awake to hear his chains clank and to see the gloomy walls 
of his dungeon, but the cool morning air that fanned his cheeks 
and the sounds of a city just stirring to life convinced him that 
he was indeed delivered and that his deliverer was an angel of 
God. 

9. What did St. Peter do ? 

If God had thus far rescued him, it was evident that God 
did not wish him now to lay down his life for the Church. There 
was no time to be lost, the city would soon be awake. He has- 
tened to the nearest house where the brethren were wont to as- 
semble, the home of Mary, the mother of Mark, and knocked at 
the door of the gate. There, as in other homes in the silent city, 
the Christians had spent the night in prayer for the Apostle's de- 
liverance. A young woman named Rhoda came to hearken. 
She was frightened when she heard the voice of St.- Peter, and 



28 



hastened to tell the others. They thought she was gone mad, but 
great was their joy when they found that St. Peter was indeed 
safe and had heard from him the hurried story of his deliverance. 
Ere the day dawned he left the city, wisely telling no one where 
he would hide himself. 

lo. How did this persecution come to an end ? 

Herod was cruelly disappointed when he discovered his 
prisoner's escape, and put the guards to death. Probably the 
persecution still continued. Herod took no further active part 
in it, being absent on a royal visit to all the cities of his domain. 
While at Caesarea, in the height of his glory, he died. His domin- 
ions were again placed under a Roman Governor who had no 
sympathy with Jewish quarrels, and so the persecution ceased. 

Vio. 15» Hn ©pen IDoov. 

Read Acts xi. 19 to xii.; Gal. ii. i to 10. 

1. How did Saul spend his retirement in Cilicia? 

In preaching the Gospel to all who would listen. In that 
province, where the Jews were not so numerous and his success in 
preaching the Gospel to them was probably very limited, he 
must have been brought to realize that the Gospel belonged to 
the Gentiles also. 

2. Who brought him again into prominence ? 

St. Barnabas, who had not forgotten him, but was seeking 
some doorway through which to bring him into relations with 
the Church. When he came to Antioch on the mission men- 
tioned in Lesson No. 12, he immediately sought for Saul that he 
might help him in organizing the Christian work in that city. 

3. Why was Antioch a peculiarly important city ? 

It was the capital of the Roman Province of Syria, and 
perhaps the third largest city of the Empire. It was a meeting 
place of the old world and the new. The caravans from the 
far East would pass through its streets, while by its port, Seleu- 
cia, with which it was connected by the river Orontes, it was 
put into communication with the enterprising nations of the 
West. It was situated, too, on the border of Asia Minor, and 
therefore within easy reach of the overland route to Rome. It, 
and not Jerusalem, was the natural starting place for the great 
missionary enterprises of the Church. 



29 



4. What was the character of its inhabitants ? 

People of every race were to be found there. On the great 
broad street, with its stately porticos and abundant statues, that 
traversed the whole length of the city, one would meet men of 
all nations. It was a beautiful city, rich and powerful, but wicked 
beyond description. It was the Paris of the Old World. Not 
far from the city was the grove of Daphne, sacred to sin. 

5. What was peculiar in the work'of the Church at Antioch ? 
It was not confined to the Jews alone. Gentiles, too, 

heard the glad tidings of the Gospel and were admitted to the 
Church. Certain Jews who came from Cyprus and Cyrene were 
the first to make this departure. There Saul began to make his 
bold assertion that in the presence of the love of Christ all dis- 
tinctions between Jew and Gentile vanish away. He had found 
his mission at last. 

6. In the year 43, who visited Antioch ? 

A prophet named Agabus, who foretold that a famine 
would soon occur in Judea. The Christians at Antioch immedi- 
ately took steps to collect money to meet this necessity. In the 
year 45 the harvest failed in Judea and in 46, about fourteen 
years after Saul's conversion, the Church sent him and St. Bar- 
nabas with the money they had raised to purchase corn for the 
poor of Jerusalem. 

7. Was Saul again treated as on his former visit ? 

No; the persecution under Herod with its attendant cruel- 
ties had somewhat effaced the memory of that in which he had 
figured so prominently. Besides, the opportunity was now his 
to overcome the prejudice of his former enemies by proving him- 
self a friend in need. 

8. What further use did Saul make of this visit ? 

He revealed privately to the Apostles, St. Peter, St. James 
and St. John, the work that he had been doing amongst the Gen- 
tiles and the conclusions to which God had led him. In order to 
emphasize more distinctly his views about the admission of the 
Gentiles to the Church, he had taken with him to Jerusalem, as 
his assistant in the work of distribution, Titus, a Gentile convert, 
and, though some of the more prejudiced Jews demanded it, he 
would not suffer him to be circumcised. 

9. Did the Apostles approve of what Saul had done ? 

Yes, they rejoiced in the results of his teaching and ad- 



30 



niitted that God had indeed chosen him to be the Apostle to the 
Gentiles. They only asked him, however great his success 
might be, still to continue to remember the poor at Jerusalem. 

lo. Did Saul remain in Jerusalem after the work of distribu- 
tion was ended ? 

He would gladly have done so and lived down all the 
prejudice against him. Then, too, the work of relieving distress 
seemed to afford him so many opportunities for preaching the 
Gospel. But as he prayed one day in the Temple he fell into 
a trance and heard his Lord commanding him, " Depart, for I 
will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles " (Acts xxii. 17-22). 
When Saul and St. Barnabas left Jerusalem, they took with them a 
young man, John, whose surname was Mark, the probable author 
of the second Gospel. 

mo. X6. Second iRevfew* 

1. Tell the story of St. Stephen's death. 

2. What was peculiar in his preaching, and why did it espe- 
cially enrage the Pharisees ? 

3. Who was Saul of Tarsus; what part did he play in the per- 
secution, and how did he become converted ? 

4. What did Ananias do for him ? 

5. How were his first efforts as a preacher received ? 

6. What were the results of the first persecution ? 

7. Tell the story of the first Confirmation. 

8. Tell the story of Cornelius. 

9. Which two of the Apostles suffered in the second perse- 
cution, and how ? 

10. Why was the Church at Antioch important, and what did it 
do for the Church at Jerusalem ? 



51 



PART III. 

THE FIRST MISSIONARY JOURNEY. 

Time, a.d. Mar., 47-50. 

17. Cyprus. 

Read Acts xiii. i to 13. 

1. What did Saul do when he returned to Antioch ? 

He remained there teaching and preaching, awaiting some 
signal from God that the time was come when he should begin 
his great work. The Church in Antioch grew and prospered, re- 
ceiving both Jews and Gentiles into membership, until it so far 
attracted the attention of the outside world that a distinctive 
name was given to the believers. " The disciples were called 
Christians first at Antioch." 

2. How did the signal come ? 

It was during a special season of prayer and fasting. Saul 
had probably reported his vision to the Church, and yet it seemed 
so great a departure to send men forth to conquer the heathen 
world for Christ, that the Church hesitated. St. Barnabas, how- 
ever, again stood by Saul and expressed his willingness to go 
forth with him upon a mission. At last the message came clear 
and distinct to some of the brethren as they knelt in prayer. It 
was God's will that St. Barnabas and Saul should be consecrated 
for the work they longed to do, for it was He who was calling 
them. 

3. How did the Church set them apart for this work ? 

By the same form wherewith the Apostles had ordained 
the Deacons, the laying-on of hands. After prayer and fasting, 
they thus released them from their work at Antioch and devoted 
them to their mission. 

4. What field did the Missionary Apostles choose wherein to 
begin their labors ? 

The island of Cyprus. It was the home of St. Barnabas. 
Already Christianity had made some progress there, and from 
thence they could easily make their way to that part of Asia 
under Roman rule. 

5. Describe their journey. 

Passing down the banks of the Orontes to Seleucia, the 



32 



port of Antioch, they thence set sail for Cyprus. A fair wind 
carried the trading-vessel in which they embarked westward 
toward its haven. No one dreamed, as the anchors were lifted 
and the sails filled, what a precious freight that vessel carried, or 
how full of meaning its voyage was for the world. 

6. With what success did they meet in Cyprus } 

They landed at Salamis, a port on the southeast coast. 
Thence they passed through the island to Paphos, a city in the 
extreme west, where the Proconsul of the island, Sergius Paulus, 
had his residence. As they passed from town to town, they con- 
fined themselves mainly to preaching in the Jewish synagogues. 
They seem to have been heard gladly, and the journey was un- 
eventful. It was a native of Cyprus who had first preached the 
Gospel to the Gentiles of Antioch. The work the Apostles had 
come to do was therefore probably already in progress in Cyprus. 

7. What was the character of Sergius Paulus, the ruler of the 
island ? 

He was a thoughtful man. Separated from all his friends 
and companions, and having much time on his hands, he inter- 
ested himself in trying to understand that mysterious East, so 
different in its thoughts and ways from his own mother country. 
When he heard of the preaching of the Apostles, he at once sent 
for them. 

8. To whom had he been listening with evident interest be- 
fore the Apostles came } 

To one Elymas, a clever man, who taught a strange ming- 
ling of religion and magic. Something, too, he probably knew 
of Nature and its laws. All this he presented in so solemn a 
manner that Sergius Paulus was much impressed. 

9. How did this man greet the advent of the Apostles ? 

He was much afraid lest he should lose the influence he 
thought himself acquiring, and therefore he opposed them in 
every way. At last Saul rebuked him as a blind leader of the 
blind, and, at the^ords of the Apostle, another darkness came 
upon him and he became indeed blind, and the world which he 
had loved so much was hidden from his eyes. Sergius Paulus 
was filled with awe at this manifestation of God's power and 
could not but himself believe in the truth of the Apostles' teaching. 

10. What new name is now given to Saul in the Book of the 
Acts? 



33 



It was the custom in those days when Rome ruled the 
world, and the Greek language was fast becoming the language 
of the Empire, for a man to bear two names, one by which he 
was known amongst his fellow-countrymen, and another, a Greek 
name, which he would use among strangers. So was it with 
Saul, who was also called Paul. Now that he actually appears as 
the Apostle to the Gentiles and has begun his life work, the writer 
of the Acts makes use of his second name, Paul, which name we 
will also use henceforth. 

IRo* IS. Hntiocb in (Balatia* 

Read Acts xiii. 13 to xiv. 

1. Whence did St. Paul and St. Barnabas journey from 
Paphos ? 

They sailed northeast to Perga, a city in the Province of 
Pamphylia, intending doubtless there to begin their work on the 
mainland. 

2. What compelled them to alter their plans ? 

St. Paul's illness. He himself tells us in his letter to the 
Galatian Church (Gal. iv. 13) that it was sickness that first led 
him into the Province of Galatia. It was probably in the sum- 
mer of 47 that they reached Perga. In the summer season, the 
low-lying sea- coast of Pamphylia is most unhealthy. Therefore 
it was decided, because of St. Paul's illness, to journey north 
across the mountain range of Taurus to the healthier steppes of 
Galatia. No preaching was done in Pamphylia, for there was 
evidently no time to be lost. The journey was fraught with 
many dangers. Prowling bands of robbers frequented the lonely 
mountain passes. 

3. What companion of St. Paul and St. Barnabas deserted 
them at this critical moment ? 

John Mark, St. Barnabas' nephew. The change of plan 
was not agreeable to him, nor had he much confidence in the 
further outcome of the mission, now that its leader was so pros- 
trated. St. Paul felt keenly this desertion. 

4. Though he arrived amongst the Galatians in so wretched 
a condition, what treatment did he receive at their hands ? 

He seems to have found kind friends at once, who gladly 
accepted the Gospel which even in his illness he preached. They 



34 



treated him, as he afterwards gratefully reminds them, as though 
he were an angel of God, or the very Master Himself. 

5. At what city did they first take up their residence? 
Pisidian Antioch — not to be confounded with the Antioch 

in Syria from whence the missionaries had started on their jour- 
ney. This Antioch was a smaller city, important for commer- 
cial reasons and because a Roman garrison usually resided there. 
The neighboring country was much infested with robbers. 

6. When St. Paul was fully recovered, what invitation did he 
and St. Barnabas receive? 

They were invited to the synagogue, that they might make 
known in public the doctrines they had been privately preaching. 
We can well imagine the synagogue to have been thronged with 
eager listeners. 

7. What was the nature of St. Paul's preaching ? 

The passages of Scripture that were probably read on this 
Sabbath from the Law and the Prophets, were Deuteronomy i. and 
Isaiah i. These seem to have suggested St. Paul's discourse. 
He reminded the Jews of their history and their hope, and how 
both could only be fulfilled by the coming of a Messiah. He told 
them of Jesus, whose Resurrection pointed Him out to be the 
promised One. 

8. What were the results of this sermon ? 

Great interest was manifested and the desire to hear St. 
Paul again was so great that he was invited to continue his dis- 
course the following Sabbath. During the week the Apostles 
were kept busy answering the many questions which the sermon 
had suggested in the minds not only of the Jews, but also of the 
proselytes and Gentiles. 

9. What was the issue on the following Sabbath ? 

The synagogue and the streets about it were crowded with 
a curious and eager throng of listeners, the majority of whom 
were not Jews. The latter were naturally jealous at this great 
interest manifested in the new teaching. Some of the more 
prejudiced Jews sought to oppose St. Paul and St. Barnabas. A 
crisis was come. It was a crisis that was often to meet the mis- 
sionaries. They faced it bravely. The rest of their message 
must also be faithfully delivered. " Since Jesus was come, the 
wall between Jew and Gentile was down forever, for He was the 
world's Saviour." The angry Jews in silence vowed vengeance 



35 



for this insult inflicted upon them in their own synagogue, but 
the Gentiles rejoiced in that the good news belonged to them too. 
10. How did the vengeance take form ? 

For a time the Apostles continued their preaching unmo- 
lested, till the whole region about Antioch heard the good news, 
but the Jews were secretly prejudicing the minds of the chief 
men of the city against them. The influential women were most 
likely already under Jewish control. At length the Apostles 
were accused before the city magistrates of generally upsetting 
the established order of society. There was no trial. The Apos- 
tles were simply treated as public nuisances, flogged and ordered 
beyond the bounds of the city. 

1Ro» 19. ITconium in (Balatia^ 

Read Acts xiv. i to 8. 

1. Whither did they take their way ? 

They did not wish to go so far from Antioch but that they 
might readily receive news from the Church there. They also 
hoped to return, as soon as the city magistrates, who were an- 
nually elected, were changed, so they journeyed eastward to 
Iconium, also a Roman colony, a smaller city of the same re- 
gion and connected by its commerce with Antioch. 

2. What good news from Antioch reached them there ? 
That the Church (consisting almost wholly of Gentiles) 

was not in the least daunted by the persecution, or the absence 
of their leaders, but faced the storm with a holy gladness and 
inspired courage. 

3. What success did they meet with at Iconium ? 

It was the old story. So long as the Apostles confined 
themselves to the first part of their message, the Jews were eager 
and willing listeners. They would be glad to be convinced that 
the Messiah was come. But as soon as the Apostles passed on 
to declare that Jesus was not merely a Jewish Prince, the founder 
of an earthly kingdom, but the Saviour of all men, Jew and Gentile 
alike, the Jews became their bitter enemies. Yet some believed. 

4. Whom did the Jews win over to their side ? 

In Iconium, as at Antioch, the Jewish colony, conducting 
to a large extent the trade of the community, was of sufficient 
importance to influence the policy of the local magistrates. These 



36 



men, therefore, were soon induced to join the Jews in their op- 
position to the Apostles. 

5 What plot did the Jews form ? 

They did not wish merely to have the Apostles flogged and 
banished from the city, as at Antioch, nor did they care to make 
formal accusation and have them tried before the Governor of the 
Province. They sought to put an end to the Apostles' work by 
taking their lives. The power of life and death did not reside in 
the city magistrates, but if there should be a tumult in the city, 
and in this tumult St. Paul and St. Barnabas should chance to be 
stoned to death, the magistrates could express to the Governor 
their horror and regret at what had occurred, and at the same 
time do nothing to discover or punish the offenders. This role 
the magistrates were willing to play. 

6. How did the Apostles escape ? 

The fiendish plot was mercifully disclosed to them, and 
since, if they stayed, there was no deliverance possible for them, 
unless in a street quarrel they were willing to oppose violence to 
violence, they thought best to leave the city and to take refuge 
in another region of Galatia where there were fewer Jews. Still 
their sojourn in Iconium had not been without fruit, and they 
left behind them a flourishing Church. 

7. What region did they choose ? 

Lycaonia, whose only two important cities were Lystra 
and Derbe. 

8. What was the difference between a province and a region.? 
A province was a large division of the Roman Empire 

under the control of a governor. The province was subdivided 
into regions which were controlled by subordinate oflicials. In 
each of these regions there would be one or more large cities 
whose affairs were controlled by local magistrates. 

9. What two regions of Galatia have been thus far mentioned? 
Phrygia Galatia, with its cities Antioch and Iconium, and 

Lycaonia Galatia, with its cities Lystra and Derbe. 

10. Had the Apostles yet been brought before the Governor of 
the Province ? 

No ; the Jews feared to take this step. They themselves 
were unpopular with the Governor, who, representing the Em- 
peror and trying to weld the province into a firm unity, found 
the Jews, with their prejudices and exclusiveness, the greatest 



37 



possible hindrance. He would be much more likely to sympa- 
thize with the Christians, who were trying to do for Christ just 
what he was trying to do for his master, to break down all such 
walls of prejudice. 

IFlo* 20* Xpstra anb Derbe in Galatta* 

Read Acts xiv. 8 to 2i. 

1. How did the Apostles fare at Lystra ? 

Lystra was a small city not much under the influence of 
Roman civilization. There was no synagogue there, and so St. 
Paul and St. Barnabas preached the Gospel in the streets of the 
city. It was a difficult task to make the good news clear to these 
simple heathen who had not yet lost faith in their own gods. 
There was probably at first not much interest in their preaching. 

2. What did St. Paul do ? 

He had noticed oftentimes a poor helpless cripple, who he 
learned had been lame from his birth, seated in the doorway of 
some house and watching, with pathetic interest, the life of the 
city in which he could play no part. St. Paul had spoken to him 
of God's love and of Jesus, and the man, wretched as he was, had 
heard him gladly and believed. St. Paul must have prayed God 
to give him power to help this man. Surely such a wonder would 
also awaken this heathen city from its stupor. And so one day, 
when he had ceased preaching, gazing earnestly upon the cripple, 
he called aloud to him to arise. Trembling, the man tried to 
obey, and he found that he could stand and walk like other folk, 
and he leaped about, mad with joy. So God heard the Apostle's 
prayer. 

3. What was the effect upon the people of Lystra? 

The news spread rapidly, and soon a great throng was gath- 
ered about the Apostles. The excited people spoke in their own 
language, which St. Paul and St. Barnabas did not understand. 
They could only see the utmost joy in their faces as they wildly 
gesticulated and pointed in their direction. St. Paul and St. 
Barnabas vainly tried to preach to them, for the people were far 
too excited to listen, and suddenly the whole multitude turned 
and ran away. Wondering what it all meant, the Apostles re- 
turned to their lodgings. 

4. What had the people been saying ? 



38 



That the gods had come down to Lycaonia. St. Barnabas, 
because of his stately bearing and noble face, they called Zeus, 
the king of the gods; and St. Paul, because of his fire and elo- 
quence, they said was Mercury, the heavenly messenger. Surely 
these two men who had done so wonderful a work must be the 
gods themselves in human form. 

5. Whither had the people gone ? 

To a Temple of Zeus just without the walls of the city. If 
the gods had been gracious enough to visit Lystra, the people of 
Lystra would show how they appreciated this favor. 

6. What further steps did they take ? 

They notified the priest of the Temple. The bulls that 
were kept in the sacred enclosure were adorned with ribbons and 
prepared for sacrifice. The people crowned themselves with 
flowers, and, dancing and singing, the whole multitude returned 
to the house where the Apostles were lodging. 

7. What did the Apostles do ? 

Hurrying out from the house, rending their garments, and 
crying out in horror, they ran to and fro among the people, trying 
to prevent their blasphemous acts. But it was with difficulty 
they restrained them. 

8. What did St. Paul tell them ? 

That he and St. Barnabas were not gods, but only weak, 
frail men; that they were messengers of the one true God by 
whom the miracle had been wrought, the God who made the sun 
to shine, and the rain to fall, and the earth to bring forth its 
fruits, and who filled men's hearts with gladness. But the peo- 
ple were now as puzzled as St. Barnabas and St. Paul had for- 
merly been, and went to their homes discontented. 

9. How did the Apostles' work at Lystra end ? 

The Jews of Antioch and Iconium, determined to accom^ 
plish their ruin and disappointed at the failure of the plot in 
Iconium, had sent certain of their number to follow the Apostles 
and find some occasion to slay them. Without much difficulty, 
they persuaded the offended people of Lystra that St. Paul and 
St. Barnabas, far from being gods, were impostors, condemned 
and despised by their own nation, mischief-makers and worthy of 
death. St. Paul was seized one day while he was preaching and 
dragged outside of the walls of the city and stoned. They left 
him there for dead. 



39 



lo. What happened later ? 

When St. Barnabas, together with the few Christians of 
Lystra, came towards evening to care for his body, they found 
that St. Paul was still living. Under the cover of the night, they 
brought him into the city, probably to the home of a good w^oman 
named Eunice, whose son Timothy was much attached to the brave 
Apostle and he to him. Early in the-morning the wounded man 
left the city. A weary journey of eight miles brought him to an- 
other little town, Derbe by name. 

Bo* 21. Ube IReturn Journey. 

Read Acts xiv. 21 to xv. 

1. Was St. Paul further troubled by the Jews ? 

No, he remained at Derbe for some time and his ministry 
met with considerable success. His enemies at first thought him 
dead and took no further steps to follow him. At any rate, they 
had gone as far as they dared in their persecution without having 
recourse to a trial before the Governor. 

2. How did the Apostles decide to return to Antioch in Syria ? 
The easiest and shortest way apparently would have been 

to cross the Taurus range, and so pass down through Cilicia to 
Tarsus and thence overland to Antioch. But as it was now 
probably winter the mountain passes were closed by snow. 
Besides, they longed to revisit the congregations they had formed, 
and see with their own eyes the progress that had been made, ere 
they returned to the Church which had sent them forth. Thus 
they decided to retrace their steps, and passing through Lystra, 
Iconium and Antioch, to sail home from some port of Pamphylia. 

3. How did they dare again to enter those cities from which 
they had been exiled ? 

New magistrates were probably now in authority, the infant 
churches they had left had grown to be of considerable impor- 
tance and were strong enough to protect them, and, finally, they 
knew that there was a limit to the daring of the Jews. 

4. What beautiful message did they deliver to the churches 
as they revisited them ? 

That the doorway into the Kingdom of God was through 
much tribulation. Trial and suffering only bring us nearer to 
our King. 



40 



5. Were the churches glad to see the Apostles ? 

Yes, and they looked up to them as their founders, and 
sought of them some form of organization whereby they might 
the better continue their work until revisited by them again. 

6. What form of organization did the Apostles give them ? 
With the help of the churches themselves, they appointed 

elders in every city, men whose age and experience qualified 
them to be the overseers of the Church, and by the laying-on of 
hands they ordained them for their work. 

7. What neglected province did they now minister to ? 
They preached the Gospel in Pamphylla, which St. Paul's 

illness had compelled them formerly to neglect. A Church was 
established at Perga. From Attalia, the port of Perga, they 
sailed directly to Seleucia and thence made their way home again 
to Antioch. 

8. How did the Church at Antioch receive the returning mis- 
sionaries ? 

With exceeding joy. The great experiment had been tried, 
and tried successfully. The Gospel had been preached beyond 
the borders of its native country, and strangers had heard it 
gladly. The world would yet be won for Christ. 

9. How had the Church at Antioch fared during the absence 
of the Apostles ? 

It had made vast progress, not only in the number of con- 
verts, but in overcoming ancient prejudices. Jew and Gentile 
mingled freely in that Church and forgot their former enmity. 
The old ritual law which forbade the Jew to have intercourse 
with the Gentile was a dead letter. Even St. Peter, when he 
visited Antioch, without any special revelation, associated cor- 
dially with the Gentiles. 

10. What did St. Paul long for? 

The approval of his mission and its results on the part of 
the Church at Jerusalem. All Christians still looked up to that 
as the mother Church. 



41 



Bo. 22. XTbe Storm (Xloub at Hnttocb* 

Read Acts xv. i to 6 ; Gal. ii. ii to 17. 

1. How had the Church at Jerusalem fared during this long 
interval ? 

It had grown and prospered.- St. James, known as the 
brother of the Lord, was recognized as its leader. But as the 
Church had broadened in its membership, it had narrowed in its 
spirit. The later converts retained much of their old Judaism. 
For them Jesus was the Christ of the Jews and only of the Gen- 
tiles in so far as they would become Jews, 

2. How were they pleased with the progress of the Church at 
Antioch ? 

From their standpoint there was much that needed cor- 
recting at Antioch. Probably when Gentiles had first been re- 
ceived into the Church there, it had been as proselytes, and these 
Gentiles had so far conformed to Judaism. But now, especially 
since St. Paul's return, all this was changed, and the Gentile who 
believed in Christ, without being required in any way to become 
a Jew, was straightway received into the Church. 

3. What did these Christian Jews do ? 

With St. James' consent they sent some of their number to 
inquire into the condition of affairs at Antioch. The delegation 
were greatly shocked, and unhesitatingly rebuked the Jews for 
their faithlessness to the old law and ritual. So earnest were 
these men that many Jews were convinced that they had been 
acting too hastily in associating so freely with the Gentiles, and 
among their number was St. Peter. Even St. Barnabas seems to 
have taken both sides in his desire to keep the peace. 

4. How did St. Paul act in this emergency ? 

He would not yield one inch. To yield was, as he thought, 
to permit the Gospel of Christ to be suffocated by the preju- 
dices of the Jews. Christ died for all men, and all men had a 
right to the good news. And so he felt compelled publicly to 
rebuke St. Peter. 

5. What seemed to be inevitable ? 

A schism in the Church at Antioch ; the one party consist- 
ing of Jewish Christians, strictly observing the law as of old when 
they were Jews; the other of those who sympathized with St. Paul 



42 



and believed that the work done in Galatia was a work of God. 
Such a division would have ruined the Church. 

6. How was this avoided ? 

Both parties were perfectly sincere and both dreaded the 
consequences of such a rupture. Therefore it was decided to 
refer the question in dispute to the Apostles and elders at Jeru- 
salem for their decision. The council of the Church should de- 
cide. 

7. Who went to Jerusalem to represent the Church at An- 
tioch ? 

The great missionaries, St. Paul and St. Barnabas. 

8. Through what countries would they pass ? 

Through Phoenicia and Samaria. The people there, as 
they heard the good news of the Gospel preached freely to the 
Gentiles and gladly accepted by them, rejoiced greatly. Every- 
where the Apostles met with sympathy until they came to Judea. 

9. When they arrived at Jerusalem what did they imme- 
diately do ? 

They told the story of their wanderings and how God had 
blessed their labors. No one could deny that indeed a wonder- 
ful work had been done. 

10. Notwithstanding, previous to the council, what did some 
of the more prejudiced Jews demand ? 

That all these Gentile converts of St. Paul should be told 
that, unless they were at once circumcised and became obedient 
to the law of Moses, they must be exiled from the Church. It 
must have been very hard for St. Paul to be patient in the pres- 
ence of such bigotry. 

IRo* 23. XTbe Council at Jerusalem* 

Read Acts xv. 6 to 36. 

1. How did St. Peter make atonement for his weakness at 
Antioch ? 

St. Paul's rebuke seems to have been taken in the noblest 
possible manner, and we can hardly sufficiently admire the cour- 
age and generosity of the man, when, after there had been much 
disputing, he boldly arose in the council and championed the 
Apostles St. Paul and St. Barnabas. 

2. What was the substance of his speech ? 



43 



He reminds his listeners of the conversion of Cornelius and 
how then God clearly showed His favor towards the Gentiles by 
the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon them. "Why put," he 
asks, " the heavy yoke of the Jewish law, beneath which we bend, 
upon the neck of the Gentiles ? " " After all, in Christ Jesus only 
is there for us, as for them, salvation." 

3. Who were the next speakers?. 

St. Paul and St. Barnabas, who now publicly and officially 
reported their journeyings, and the success of their preaching. 

4. Who concluded the discussion ? 

St. James, who, as Apostolic Head of the Church at Jeru- 
salem, seems to have presided over the council. 

5. What ground did he take ? 

" The coming of the Gentiles into the Church was foretold 
by the Prophets. Why should they marvel at it ? The ruined tab- 
ernacle of David, when rebuilded, was to be a refuge for both 
Gentile and Jew. And yet, that they might both dwell peaceably 
together, there were certain conditions which the Gentile Chris- 
tians ought, in Christian courtesy, to observe. For the rest, the 
Jewish Christian might hear the Law read daily in the synagogue, 
if he would, and might observe it." 

6. What were the conditions ? 

They were very simple indeed. Two of them seem to have 
had chiefly for their object that Jew and Gentile might mingle 
socially and feast together, as was the custom in those days be- 
fore partaking of the Lord's Supper. The Gentile was to avoid 
eating meat that had been offered to idols; meat that still con- 
tained the blood, and meat of victims that had been strangled. 
Such food was abhorrent to Jews, and the Gentiles ought at least 
to make these concessions. The third condition concerned what 
was the peculiar temptation of the Gentiles, formerly wont to 
attend the licentious rites of heathen worship. They were to keep 
themselves pure. 

7. How was this speech of St. James received ? 

It was satisfactory to all parties except the extreme Jewish 
wing of the Church. St. Paul seems to have been convinced of 
its wisdom, and pleased with its broad and generous spirit. 

8. What did the extreme Judaists do ? 

They acquiesced for the time, as they could not help do- 
ing, but still with the reservation that this was an accommodation 



44 



to the weakness of the Gentiles. " Such as only observed these 
conditions had but entered the outer vestibule of the Church. 
To be a true Christian one must be a true Jew." If it had not 
been for these men, there would have been no further trouble in 
the Church, and the compromise would have lasted until all need 
for it ceased. 

9. What action did the Church take after St. James' speech ? 

They resolved to send a letter containing its contents to the 
Church at Antioch. This letter was to be sent not merely by the 
hands of St. Paul and St. Barnabas, but with them were to go 
two men, Silas and Judas, leaders of the Church at Jerusalem, 
that the Church at Antioch might be assured of the sympathy of 
the mother Church, and might know surely that the letter ex- 
pressed its wishes. Probably also St. Paul was asked, and con- 
sented to make known its contents to the Gentile churches of 
Galatia. 

10. How was the letter received at Antioch ? 

With great joy, and the breach in the Church was healed 
and peace restored. 

IRo. 24. Ubivt> IReview. 

1. What interesting event occurred at Paphos in the Island 
of Cyprus ? 

2. Why did St. Paul and St. Barnabas pass rapidly through 
Pamphylia, and who refused to go with them ? 

3. What success did they meet with at Pisidian Antioch, and 
why were they compelled to leave the city ? 

4. What plot was formed against them at Iconium ? 

5. What miracle was performed at Lystra, and what were its 
consequences ? 

6. What did the people of Lystra do to St. Paul, and why ? 

7. Where did the Apostles go to from Lystra, and why were 
they not further molested ? 

8. What was the difference between a province and a region, 
and in what regions of the Province of Galatia had the Apostles 
toiled ? 

9. How was a rupture nearly caused in the Church at An- 
tioch ? 

10. What was the decree of the Jerusalem Council ? 



45 



PART IV. 

THE SECOND MISSIONARY 
JOURNEY. 

Time, a.d. 50-53. 

1Flo» 25* IRevisittna tbe Cbutcbes* 

Read Acts xv. 36 to xvi. 6. 

1. After their return from the council what step did St. Paul 
and St. Barnabas decide to take ? 

To revisit the churches which they had formed, encourag- 
ing and strengthening them. 

2. What difference of opinion was there between the two 
great missionaries ? 

St. Barnabas desired to take Mark again with them. This 
most Christ-like of Apostles, who was the first to reach out a 
brother's hand to St. Paul when after his conversion he returned 
to Jerusalem, was now willing to forgive the comrade who had 
deserted at a critical moment and again to trust him. St. Paul 
felt that the work was too important to risk making any mistakes, 
and he could not yet place confidence in Mark. Later these two 
became firm friends. 

3. How did the Apostles adjust their difference ? 

By dividing their mission field between them : St. Barna- 
bas and Mark going to Cyprus, and St. Paul to Galatia. 

4. Whom did St. Paul take with him.? 

Silas, one of the envoys from Jerusalem. This man did 
not return with his companions to the mother Church when his 
message was delivered, but remained at Antioch, attracted doubt- 
less by the personality of St. Paul and the broader life of the 
Church in that city. 

5. What way did St. Paul and Silas take ? 

It being now summer time and the mountain passes prac- 
ticable, they journeyed north through Syria and Cilicia and be- 
gan their work in the Province of Galatia at Derbe. 
6- Who joined St. Paul at Lystra ? 

The youth Timothy, not much more than a boy. He had 
become devoted to St. Paul during his former stay in that city 



46 



and now gladly left his home and his future prospects to become 
a companion of the Apostle in his wanderings. St. Timothy was 
beloved by all the Christians of Lystra and Iconium. St. Paul 
loved him more than all his companions. During the years that 
followed he was to St. Paul as a son, and St. Paul was to him as 
a father. The last of St. Paul's letters, written just before his 
death, was addressed to St. Timothy. 

7. As St. Paul passed through the churches how did he 
show his regard for the Jerusalem Council ? 

By publishing its decrees and requesting the Gentiles to 
keep them. 

8. What further step did he take ? 

To make every possible concession to the Jewish Chris- 
tians and to meet generosity with generosity, at his request, St. 
Timothy, who was only partially a Jew by birth, his father 
being a Greek, was circumcised. 

9. How was St. Paul's generosity misinterpreted ? 

The extreme Jewish wing of the Church, restless and dis- 
satisfied after the decrees of the council, sent envoys to follow 
in the steps of St. Paul. These men greatly disturbed the churches 
of Galatia, teaching their Gospel that to be truly a Christian one 
must become in every regard a Jew. They said many bitter 
things about St. Paul, and accused him of not really believing the 
Gospel which he taught. As a proof of his inconsistency they 
doubtless urged the circumcision of St. Timothy. 

10. What grand letter did this call forth from St. Paul.? 

Three years later (a.d. 53) when he was returned from his 
second missionary journey, tidings reaching him at Syrian An- 
tioch of the confusion that had been wrought in the churches of 
Galatia by these men, he wrote that strong and manly letter 
known to us as the Epistle to the Galatians, preparatory to his 
again visiting these churches. 



47 



Read Acts xvi. 6 to ii. 

1. After passing through Galatia, where did St. Paul hope to 
preach the Gospel ? 

In the Province of Asia, the wealthiest and most influential 
province of that portion of Asia under Roman rule. In it were 
many large and important cities. 

2. What prevented him from fulfilling his design ? 

In some way, unknown to us, he was forbidden by the 
Spirit. Perhaps it was again his illness that thwarted him. 

3. Passing in a northwesterly direction through Asia, into 
what province did he next seek to enter ? 

Bithynia, which lay in the north along the Black Sea, but 
again the missionaries were in some strange way prevented, and 
turning to the west made a hurried journey to Troas. 

4. During these rapid journeys was the Gospel preached ? 
No; apparently not. There was seemingly a necessity for 

great haste. As we remember how in like manner St. Paul passed 
rapidly through Pamphylia, we are forced to conclude that prob- 
ably it was again the Apostle's illness which necessitated these 
hurried journeys. In this he sav/ the hand of God. 

5. When Troas was reached, for whom would St. Paul natu- 
rally seek ? 

Wearied with his long and fruitless journey, he would make 
inquiries for some physician who could help him to regain his 
health and strength. There was in Troas a man of Macedonia, 
Luke by nam,e, a physician who had left his own city, Philippi, to 
seek his fortune in the East. To him St. Paul was brought. 

6. Did Luke help him ? 

Yes; under his care the Apostle seems to have grown strong 
again, but greater still was the good which St. Paul did for St. 
Luke. During the Apostle's illness they were thrown much 
together, and St. Paul made use of the opportunities thus afforded 
to make known to the physician the glad tidings of which he was 
the bearer. St. Luke became a Christian and thenceforth was 
associated with St. Paul in his work. His presence probably 
saved the Apostle from any further serious attacks of his illness. 

7. What more do we know of St. Luke ? 

He seems to have been a man of culture and education. 

* Some of the statements made in this lesson are conjectural, but the highest prob- 
ability attaches to them. 



48 



He it was who wrote the third Gospel, also the book of the Acts. 
Of himself he says but little, but we gather that he remained with 
St. Paul from the fact that hereafter, in speaking of the Apostle's 
journeyings, he almost invariably says " we did this " and " we did 
that." He remained faithfully by St. Paul in his last imprison- 
ment (II. Tim. iv. ii). St. Paul calls him the beloved physician. 

8. Of what did St. Paul and his physician probably often 
converse ? 

Of the countries lying to the west and the possibility of 
preaching the Gospel there. As St. Paul grew stronger, the ques- 
tion in his mind was whether to travel south into the Province of 
Asia again, or to go forth over the sea into that country, Mace- 
donia, of which St. Luke spoke so affectionately. 

9. What decided the Apostle ? 

A vision which came to him one night in his dreams — a 
vision of a certain man of Macedonia who cried out to him, Come 
over and help us!" As there was no peculiarity of dress whereby 
a Macedonian could be distinguished, and as no other man of 
Macedonia was probably known to St. Paul, this certain Mace- 
donian of whom he dreamed could have been no other than St. 
Luke himself. 

10. What was the result of this vision ? 

When St. Paul communicated it to his companions in the 
morning, it was decided by them all that it should be regarded as 
a call of God, and so they sought at once for a vessel in which to 
make the journey. 

mo. 27. pbtUppt. 

Read Acts xvi. ii to 25. 

1. To what city did they first go? 

Finding a suitable vessel, they sailed past the island of Sa- 
mothracia and landed at Neapolis, the port of Philippi. Philippi 
was the home of St. Luke, an important city, in St. Luke's eyes 
the chief city of the province. It had been made a Roman col- 
ony in memory of the great victory won in its vicinity, whereby 
Rome had become an Empire. 

2. How did St. Paul begin his work in Philippi.? 

There were but few Jews in the city and no synagogue 
there. Such Jews as resided in Philippi were wont to meet for 



49 



worship on the Sabbath day along the river bank outside of the 
walls of the city. Such a place of meeting was called a proseuk. 
Thither went St. Paul the first Sabbath after his landing, and 
preached the Gospel. 

3. Who was among his listeners ? 

A certain wealthy woman named Lydia, a widow, and a 
native of Thyatira. She resided in Philippi to look after the in- 
terests of her business, the import and sale of garments, especially 
those dyed with the royal purple dye for which Thyatira was fa- 
mous. She was already a partial convert to Judaism. 

4. What effect did St. Paul's preaching have upon this woman? 
She heard him gladly, and eventually she was baptized. 

She then placed her handsome home at St. Paul's disposal, that he 
might make use of its large and spacious rooms as a church 
wherein to preach the Gospel. 

5. What happened repeatedly as the missionaries passed 
through the streets of the city ? 

They were followed by a poor slave girl, a ventriloquist, 
whose owners had made much money out of her, using her as a 
fortune teller, a discoverer of lost articles, etc. The poor crea- 
ture was thought to be possessed of a spirit. She herself be- 
lieved it. 

6. With what words did she annoy the Apostles ? 

She seems to have heard something of their message, and, 
more in mockery than in earnest, she would follow them through 
the streets crying, " These men are the servants of the Most 
High God, which shew unto us the way of salvation." St. Paul 
was grieved at this annoyance, and sorry for the poor woman. So 
one day he stopped and, turning about, faced the soothsayer. " In 
the name of Jesus," he said, gazing earnestly upon her, " I com- 
mand the evil spirit to leave thee." The woman was awed into 
calmness. She believed herself delivered from the spirit, and no 
longer would she, or could she, though threatened by her mas- 
ters, employ her gift of ventriloquism. The income derived from 
her was at an end. 

7. What step did her masters take 

They laid in wait for St. Paul and Silas. They might 
preach what they pleased, but when it came to interfering with 
business, they must be checked at once. Having seized the 
missionaries, they dragged them before the city magistrates. 



50 



8. What charge did they make against them ? 

"These men," they said, are wretched Jews, who, not con- 
tent with the privileges accorded their nation, are teaching new 
and strange customs, not lawful for us to receive or observe, 
being Romans." 

9. How did the magistrates act? 

The men who accused the prisoners were probably both 
wealthy and influential. The citizens of a Roman colony were 
very proud of the fact that they were Romans, and their magis- 
trates were proportionately puffed up. Sucl an accusation there- 
fore was well chosen. The magistrates made a rreat show of 
their indignation and rent their clothes in loyal horror. 
10. What punishment did they inflict upon the prisoners ? 

They commanded them to be beaten by the lictors and 
placed in the innermost prison, their feet thrust in the stocks, 
intending doubtless later to refer the matter to the Governor of 
the Province. 

2S. WliWi (Cont^nue^)♦ 

Read Acts xvi. 25 toxvii.; II. Cor, xi. 25. 

1. How often does St. Paul tell us in one of his letters (II. 
Cor. xi. 25) he suffered beneath the lictor's rods ? 

Three times, but this in Philippi is the only occasion of 
which the story is preserved to us. It was a most cruel punish- 
ment. The prisoners were stripped of their clothing in the pub- 
lic market-place, and their hands were bound to the whipping- 
post low enough to compel them to bend forward and expose 
their backs to the blows of the rodso They were beaten until 
they could no longer stand. St. Paul and Silas, in the midst of 
a howling mob, endured this torture silently. 

2. How did St. Paul and Silas spend their time in prison ? 
The jailor, after he had thrust them into the innermost 

cell, chained them to the wall, and fastened their feet in the 
stocks, was surprised, as he bolted the door upon them, to hear, 
instead of the usual shrieks and curses, the voices of men singing 
hymns of praise. During the night the Apostles thus passed 
their time, and in trying to preach the Gospel to their hardened 
fellow-prisoners. 

3. What happened about midnight.? 



51 



The night was strangely still and calm. Along the shore 
of the ^gean Sea, the waters lay motionless. For a time the 
jailor must have tossed restlessly, the echo of the singing still in 
his ears, wondering who these strange prisoners were, who suf- 
fered so nobly and sang hymns even in their misery. At length 
he fell asleep. At midnight he was aroused by the rocking of 
his couch. He sprang up instantly and, awakening his house- 
hold, hurried out into the prison court. It was the tremor of a 
passing earthquake. 

4. What effect had this earthquake upon the prison ? 

The rocking of the prison walls had dislodged the great 
bars by which the doors were bolted. They fell, and the doors 
swung open. The staples that held the chains to the wall had 
slipped from their holdings. The prisoners were free. 

5. When the jailor saw this, what was he about to do ? 

He always slept with his sword at his side, and instinctively 
he had seized it as he rushed from the house. When he saw the 
open doors, he fancied that the prisoners must have escaped — 
their God had freed them. To-morrow he must answer with his 
life for their lives. Why wait for disgrace, followed by death ? 
It were better to end it all now, and he drew his sword to take his 
own life. 

6. How was he prevented ? 

As he stood in the doorway with the light of the night be- 
hind him, he was plainly visible to St. Paul and Silas. They 
saved his life by crying out to him, " Do thyself no harm ; we are 
all here." The other prisoners had been too frightened to make 
a dash for liberty, and St. Paul and Silas would not. 

7. What did the jailor then do ? 

He called for lights, which his attendants speedily brought, 
and then, entering into the prison, he threw himself down before 
St. Paul and Silas, told them how he had wondered at their cour- 
age, and asked them of the God whom they served, what 
should he do to be saved from His wrath " ? St. Paul and Silas 
made known to him the beautiful story of the Master for whose 
sake they so willingly suffered. And when the jailor had taken 
them to his rooms, washed their wounds, and given them all the 
relief in his power, he and all his household were baptized. 

8. Meanwhile, what had the friends of the prisoners been 
probably doing ? 



52 



Lydia and other influential Christians had toiled faithfully 
in their behalf, and had convinced the magistrates that there was 
no charge against the prisoners sufficient to warrant their further 
punishment. Perhaps, too, the earthquake aroused in these 
officials superstitious fears, lest they had punished the innocent. 
9. As soon as the day dawned, what did the magistrates do ? 

They sent a message to the prison that St. Paul and Silas 
should be at once discharged. " Let those men go." 
10. What answer did St. Paul make ? 

For the sake of the Church in Philippi, and that in the fu- 
ture the Christians might not meet with like cruel treatment, St. 
Paul thought it best to humble these magistrates. " They have 
punished us, though Roman citizens, without a trial, and have 
publicly beaten us ; now let them come themselves and apolo- 
gize," Such was his answer. When they heard that the prisoners 
were Romans the magistrates were much alarmed, and came and 
begged the Apostles to pardon what had been done, and to leave 
the city quietly, that there might be no further trouble. Had St. 
Paul and Silas complained to the Governor the magistrates 
would have been severely punished. 

Read Acts xvii. i to 10. 

1. When they were thus released from prison, where did the 
Apostles go ? 

They went first to the house of Lydia, where the Christians 
were assembled, and spoke words of comfort and encouragement 
to them. Then, obeying the wishes of the magistrates, they left 
the city. 

2. What city did they next visit ? 

Passing hurriedly through Amphipolis and Apollonia, for 
there were probably few Jews in either town, they came to Thes- 
salonica, an important seaport where, if a Church could be estab- 
lished, it would exert a far-reaching influence. 

3. How did St. Paul begin his work there ? 

He took up his lodgings in the house of a Jew named 
Jason, and sought to earn his living at his trade of tent-making, 
for he realized the importance of Thessalonica, and intended to 



53 



make a long stay there. As usual he began his work by preach- 
ing in the synagogue. 

4. How was the preaching received ? 

Some of the Jews believed, but the majority scouted the 
notion that He who had been crucified as a malefactor could 
indeed be the Christ. Such proselytes, however, as had fre- 
quented the synagogue gladly heard -St. Paul's message. 

5. What wider circle did St. Paul's preaching reach ? 
Through these proselytes St. Paul was enabled to come 

into contact with the Gentiles, and with many of the women who 
stood high in society. Thus was a strong Church formed, con- 
sisting almost wholly of Gentile converts. 

6. As the work of preaching absorbed more and more of his 
time, and made it hard for him to continue his trade, and as dan- 
gers thickened, from whom did St. Paul receive assistance ? 

The Church at Philippi had not forgotten its founder, but 
generously sent substantial gifts to him, which work of loving- 
kindness was especially grateful to St. Paul (Phil. iv. 16). This 
was done more than once. 

7. How did the Jews regard this success of the Apostles 

As at Antioch and Iconium, they were devoured with jeal- 
ousy ; but as the sympathies of the upper classes in Thessalonica 
were largely with the Christians, it was not easy to accomplish 
the ruin of the Apostles. In Thessalonica, however, as in every 
seaport town, there was a rif raf population, idling about the 
wharves and quays, always ready for some excitement. These, 
the Jews, by money, or in some other way, contrived to win over. 
Followed by this rabble, the house of Jason was besieged and, in 
the absence of St. Paul, Jason himself was taken prisoner. 

8. What charge did the Jews make against Jason before the 
city authorities ? 

That he was befriending and harboring men who, wherever 
they had gone, had made trouble and sought to turn society up- 
side down. These rascals further taught, they said, that there 
was another Emperor, Christ, whom men ought to obey. 

9. What did the magistrates do ? 

They would gladly have dismissed the case, but this latter 
charge compelled them to take some action, lest they themselves 
should be accused of dealing leniently with traitors. They were 
as forbearing as it was possible for them to be, however, merely 



54 



exacting bonds from Jason that he would prevent further trouble. 
St. Paul and Silas they made no effort to apprehend, 
lo. What did the Apostles do ? 

Much as they longed to remain in Thessalonica, they had 
no option but to take their departure. To remain would only 
have put the life of their friend Jason in serious danger. Often, 
in the following months, St. Paul longed to return to the city and 
strengthen and stablish the Church there, but while he willingly 
faced all danger to himself, he would not put a comrade's life in 
jeopardy. It is probably to Jason's bond that St. Paul refers 
when he speaks of a hindrance of Satan (I. Thes. ii. i8). 

Read Acts xvii. lo to i6. 

1. Whither did the missionaries go from Thessalonica.? 
After Jason's deliverance, that very night, lest there should 

be further disturbance, they journeyed westward along the Roman 
road to Berea, another large city of Macedonia, where also there 
were many Jews. 

2. What success did they have at Berea? 

The Jews of this city seem to have been nobler and more 
open to the truth than those of Thessalonica. St. Paul's preach- 
ing in the synagogue was attended with much greater success, 
many Jews at first believing. 

3. Did St. Paul confine his efforts here to the Jews ? 

No; as in Thessalonica, through the proselytes, he reached 
the Gentiles, and many of the leading citizens became iriembers 
of the Church. There seemed every likelihood that a large and 
flourishing Church would be established in Berea, consisting of 
both Jews and Gentiles. 

4. What frustrated this ? 

The Jews of Thessalonica, dissatisfied with the clemency of 
the authorities, and disappointed that St. Paul and Silas had es- 
caped their vengeance, determined to follow them to Berea, and 
there make another effort to destroy them. 

5. What did the brethren do ? 

As soon as the presence of these Jews in the city was ob- 
served, and before they had time to incite the mob and repeat 



55 



the same proceedings as in Thessalonica, the brethren decided 
that it was best that St. Paul, the chief object of Jewish hatred, 
should take his departure. They sent him down to the port as if 
to go to sea. 

6. Who remained at Berea ? 

Silas and Timothy. They waited to strengthen the Church 
established there, and to receive the lat-est news from Thessalonica, 
to which St. Paul still hoped to return. 

7. Did St. Paul remain at the port ? 

No ; that was soon found to be dangerous and impossible. 
A ship was just about to sail for Athens. The brethren that were 
with him persuaded him to embark; that seemed his only safety. 
Wherever he might go in Macedonia, he could be sure that his 
restless enemies would seek him out. Jewish merchants were 
always passing from town to town, and the news of one synagogue 
spread rapidly to the others. The brethren conducted him as 
far as Athens. 

8. For whom did St. Paul send by his returning escort ? 

For Silas and Timothy. The condition of affairs in Thes- 
salonica greatly worried him, and he longed for the latest news. 
Only Timothy was able to come immediately. 

9. What seems to have been taking place in Thessalonica } 
The Jews had been so far successful in stirring up enmity 

against the Christians, that they suffered much even after St. Paul's 
departure at the hands of the heathen mob (I. Thess. ii. 14) St. 
Paul immediately sent Timothy back to them to comfort and sus- 
tain them (I. Thess. iii. i, 2). 

10. What letters did St. Paul write to these churches from 
Corinth a little later (a.d. 51-52) ? 

The two letters known to us as the First and Second Epis- 
tles to the Thessalonians. The great trials through which they 
had passed seem to have aroused in the Christians in Thessalon- 
ica an expectation that Christ would soon return. Many neglected 
their work and ordinary duties because of this hope, and lived in 
a state of unhealthy excitement. Furthermore, some said that 
the faithful who had perished would lose all this great joy. These 
errors St. Paul combats. The times are in the Lord's hand. 
Be sober, calm, and faithful. Christ died for us, and whether we 
live or sleep, when He comes we shall live with Him." 



56 



1Ro» 31* Btbene. 

Time, a.d. , August, 51. 
Read Acts xvii. 16 to xviii. 

1. While St. Paul remained alone at Athens waiting for the 
coming of Timothy and Silas, how did he busy himself ? 

Athens was very different from any other city which St. 
Paul had hitherto visited. There was a synagogue there, where 
the Apostle might preach, but seemingly there were no prose- 
lytes. The first days were passed in studying the life of the 
city. 

2. What impression did Athens make upon him ? 

The abundance of sacred statues, altars and temples per- 
suaded him at first that he had come to a most religious city, but 
he was soon undeceived by the gaiety and idleness of the people, 
who seemed to spend most of their time chatting in the streets. 
Probably, too, he must have noticed the unusual number of phi- 
losophers and professors to be met with there, men who did much 
talking and endeavored to appear very wise; also the multitude 
of young students, with all their careless merriment, who had 
come to Athens, the great university town of the old world, 
to finish their education. It was with the philosophers and pro- 
fessors that St. Paul decided to begin his work amongst the Gen- 
tiles. 

3. Was this difficult ? 

No; St. Paul soon found that it was the delight of the 
Athenians to hear and tell some new thing. The philosophers 
were always ready for a discussion, but they laughed in their 
sleeves at this earnest Jew, whom they called in mockery a little 
bird who had picked up a few stray crumbs of learning. But he 
persevered, speaking daily to every one who would listen. 

4. What did they make out of St. Paul's preaching ? 
Because he preached Jesus and the Resurrection, they 

called him an innovator who sought to introduce strange gods. 
He appeared to them *' to be only one of the many ambitious 
teachers who came to Athens to seek there fame and fortune." 

5. How did this end ? 

The philosophers and professors, wearied at length by St. 
Paul's importunity, decided to bring him before the Council of 
the University, the Areopagus, which seemingly had the authority 



57 



to forbid or allow him to continue his teaching. (Acts xvii. 22 
should read, " Then Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus.") 

6. Where did the meeting take place ? 

Probably in the market-place (the Agora as it was called). 
Many people gathered there, expecting to witness a laughable 
scene — the confusion of this ignorant Jew before the learned 
council. 

7. How did St. Paul begin his speech ? 

By appealing to the religious instincts of the Athenians. 
He was not in the least daunted. Traversing their city he had 
noticed an altar with this inscription^ * To the Unknown God.* 
It was no new God he had come to preach, but this very unknown 
God, the God who was before all things, and by whom all things 
were made. No shrine could contain Him. No idol could rep- 
resent Him. Re needed no gifts. He was the source of all life. 
So great, yet not far away — near to each one of us, ' for in Him 
we live and move and are.' " 

8. What further did St. Paul add ? 

Thus far they had listened to him politely. They had 
heard similar talk before, but it was a novelty to hear it from a 
Jew. But then St. Paul became more definite, and told them 
that the time for ignorance and superstition was ended, that God 
had sent a messenger into the world to make clear the truth, and 
by Him the world would be judged. " God hath borne witness 
to his messenger in that he hath raised him from the dead." 

9. What was the effect of his speech ? 

As soon as he spoke of the Resurrection the majority of 
his listeners laughed outright ; some said more courteously, "We 
will hear you again in regard to this matter" ; but the council 
took no action, as St. Paul seemed to them only a harmless fanatic, 
to whom none but fools would listen. 
10. Were any converted by his speech ? 

Dionysius, one of the council, was persuaded and believed, 
and a woman in the throng of listeners named Damaris, probably 
of doubtful character and a few others, whose names are unknown 
to us. It was only long afterwards that a Church was established 
at Athens, for conceit erects the highest barrier against truth. 



58 



1Ro» 32. Codntb. 

Time, a.d., September, 51. 
Read Acts xviii. i to 7. 

1. Did St. Paul tarry longer at Athens ? 

No; he saw that he could do no further work there for his 
Master. The ridicule of the council made it impossible for him 
to preach to the people, who, shallow- minded as they were, would 
surely only echo the laughter of the Areopagus, if he spoke to 
them of Jesus. He could not bear to be idle, so he took ship and 
sailed to Corinth, leaving word for Silas and Timothy to follow him. 

2. What important resolution did he make as he landed in 
Corinth? 

Like a true missionary, he blamed himself for his failure in 
Athens. He had not presented the truth as plainly and bluntly 
as he should. Hereafter he was done with philosophical orations, 
and was determined to know nought else " save Jesus Christ and 
Him crucified" (I. Cor. ii. i, 2). 

3. With whom did St. Paul meet in Corinth ? 

With a Jew named Aquila and his wife Priscilla, lately come 
from Rome, for the Emperor Claudius had issued an edict ex- 
pelling the Jews from that city. 

4. What do we learn from this edict ? 

That Christianity had already made some progress in 
Rome, how, or by whom brought there, we cannot tell. It was 
because of many disturbances amongst the Jews, as a Roman his- 
torian tells us, caused by one Chrestus, that the edict had gone 
forth. This Chrestus can have been no other than Christ, whom 
the historian, with the usual Roman ignorance of Jewish affairs, 
supposes to have been actually living in Rome at the time. 

5. What drew St. Paul and these exiled Jews closely together ? 
Aquila and Priscilla were also tentmakers by trade. It 

was probably in seeking for occupation that St. Paul had found 
them. Discovering that they too were Christians, he abode with 
them and joined them in their work. It was because of the many 
talks he had with Aquila that St. Paul learned so much of the 
Church in Rome, and became possessed of a longing to visit that 
city. 

6. What usual course did he follow in Corinth ? 

He preached on the Sabbath days to the Jews and prose- 



59 



lytes in the synagogue, not meeting, however, with much success. 

7. Why was Corinth an important centre wherein to establish 
a Church ? 

Situated upon a narrow isthmus that separated the ^gean 
from the Ionian Sea, it was on the direct line of traffic between 
Asia and Italy. In striking contrast with Athens, its streets were 
crowded with busy throngs. If men came to Athens to get 
learning, they came to Corinth to amass wealth. There, men of 
all nations were gathered, and vices of all nations flourished. 
Corinth must be conquered for Christ. 

8. Who rejoined St. Paul at Corinth? 

Silas and Timothy; and their coming seems to have given 
the Apostle new courage and spirit. With even more than his 
usual earnestness, he testified to the Jews that Jesus was the 
Christ. The news which they brought him of the state of affairs 
in Thessalonica necessitated his writing his two letters to the 
Church in that city. (See Lesson No. 30, question 10.) 

9. Were the Jews of Corinth more ready to be convinced than 
those of other cities had been ? 

No; the Jews in this money- making town seem to have been 
even coarser and fiercer in their opposition than those elsewhere 
encountered. With horrid blasphemies, not arguments, they re- 
plied to St. Paul. 

10. What did St. Paul then do? 

He shook his garment as if to remove all results of contact 
with them, and told them plainly that he had done all that he 
would or could for them. Henceforth he would minister unto 
the Gentiles. " Your blood be upon your own heads." 

no. 33. Codntb (ContinueC))^ 

Read Acts xviii. 7 to 18. 

1. Where did St. Paul then preach ? 

The only convenient place that offered itself was the house 
of one Justus, a proselyte, unfortunately very near to the syna- 
gogue. 

2. Who joined St. Paul there ? 

Probably all the proselytes, as usual, followed the Gospel — 
those proselytes whom the Jews toiled so hard to win. But the 
severest blow that the synagogue received was the secession of 



6o 



its presiding officer, Crispus. He and all his household became 
Christians, and were baptized by the hands of Paul himself. 
Gains and Stephanas, also men of importance, joined the Church; 
and Chloe, a wealthy woman whose servants passed back and 
forth between Corinth and Ephesus, transacting her business. 

3. What vision did St. Paul receive in Corinth ? 

There must have been frequent ruptures between these 
neighboring congregations, the Christian and the Jewish, and 
many a cause for the Apostle's discouragement. But one night 
in the lonely hours, when perhaps he was still toiling at his trade, 
he heard distinctly a voice telling him to speak boldly and with- 
out fear, for God was with him, and God had much people in 
Corinth who were waiting for the light. 

4. What step did the Jews at last take f 

A new governor was come to the Province of Achaia, Gal* 
lio by name. He would reside in the city of Corinth. It was to 
be expected that, at the outset of his official career, he would 
gladly make the Jews his friends by doing them a favor. St. 
Paul was therefore seized and dragged before the Governor's 
judgment seat, Sosthenes, the new ruler of the synagogue, acting 
as his accuser. 

5. What do we know of this Gallio } 

He was a cultured Roman gentleman, the brother of the 
great philosopher Seneca, a man of high character and much be- 
loved by his friends. 

6. How does this trial of St. Paul differ from his former trials ? 
Hitherto he had only been brought before local city mag- 
istrates, men of no great power, and as a rule of no great intelli- 
gence, now he stands before a Roman gentleman, the governor 
of a province, the representative of the Imperial Majesty of 
Rome. 

7. What accusation did the Jews make against St. Paul ? 
Curiously enough, these Jews of Corinth did not accuse 

him of treason and of setting up a new Emperor, Christ. They 
were apparently not prepared to make so grievous a charge, now 
that proofs might be demanded and a regular trial instituted. 
They simply said, " This fellow here makes trouble in our Church 
by teaching men to worship God contrary to the Law." 

8. What did the Governor do ? 

St- Paul was about to make answer, but the Governor stayed 



6i 



him by a gesture. *' If," said Gallic, ''you charged this man with a 
crime, I should be obliged to look into it, but as it seems to be 
only a matter of words and names and your Law, not Roman 
Law, you will have to attend to it yourselves, for I will have 
nothing to do with it," and so he dismissed the complaint. 

9. What did the people do to Sosthenes, St. Paul's accuser ? 

Seeing the Jews' discomfiture, and assured by the words of 
the Governor of his contempt far them, the Greeks took Sosthe- 
nes, the chief ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the 
very judgment seat. Gallio seemed indifferent, and made no 
effort to interfere. 

10. What do we learn from this scene? 

That when we ascend to the magistrates too powerful to 
fear the influence of the Jews, we find the latter treated with the 
contempt that every Roman naturally felt for them, even if com- 
pelled for policy's sake to hide it. As to the Christian Church, 
hardly yet noticeable by them, the Roman authorities were at 
present indifferent. It certainly did not incur their hatred to the 
same extent as the Jewish, for it did not erect about itself the 
same wall of pride and prejudice. Later only, when the Church 
had grown to considerable power, did it endure persecution at the 
hands of the Roman authorities. 

IRo, 34» XTbe /iDisstonari^'s IReturn. 

Read Acts xviii. 18 to 23. 

1. After the failure of the attempt to try him before the Gov- 
ernor, what did St. Paul do ? 

He remained for some time in Corinth, teaching without 
hindrance. Perhaps his old enemy, Sosthenes, was among his 
converts, for we find a man of that name associated with him 
later in the greeting that prefaces the First Epistle to the Corin- 
thians (I. Cor. i.). 

2. From whence had St. Paul drawn many of his converts at 
Corinth ? 

From the very dregs of the population. From I. Cor. vi. 
9-1 1 we learn that some of the Christians before their conversion 
had been men and women of impure lives, thieves, misers, drunk- 
ards, etc. 



62 



3. What was the name of the port of Corinth, and what noble 
Christian woman resided there ? 

Corinth itself was situated on the western shore of the isth- 
mus. On the eastern shore was the port Cenchrese, considered 
as a part of the city. Phoebe, whose home was there^ a noble 
Christian lady, a convert of St. Paul, made it her special labor of 
love to help the poorer brethren as they passed to and fro 
through the port (Rom. xvi. i, 2). 

4. Now that the Church was firmly established in Corinth, 
what did St. Paul desire to do ? 

To visit again the Holy City. It was now nearly three 
years since he had been there, and he was anxious once more to 
receive the blessing of the mother Church upon his labors. 

5. Of what opportunity did he avail himself } 

Early in March, a ship containing the Jewish pilgrims to 
the Passover Feast would put forth from Corinth and make its 
way to C^sarea, stopping for additional pilgrims at Ephesus. St. 
Paul decided to go with these Passover pilgrims and, that he 
might the more readily refuse all temptations to delay at Ephe- 
sus, where he was so desirous to preach the Gospel, he placed 
himself under a vow at Cenchreae. Following the Jewish custom, 
he shaved his head. Aquila and Priscilla, Silas and Timothy em- 
barked with him. 

6. When the ship stopped at Ephesus, did St. Paul tarry there 
He merely had time to preach one sermon in the synagogue. 

The Ephesian Jews besought him to stay with them, but his shorn 
head showed that this was impossible. He promised, however, 
to return to them later if God would permit it. 

7. What companions of St. Paul left him at Ephesus? 
Aquila and Priscilla decided to remain in that city to con- 
tinue the work St. Paul had begun. Timothy also in all likeli- 
hood parted from him there, intending to rejoin the Apostle at 
Antioch, after he had passed through Galatia, visiting his home 
at Lystra. 

8. Upon arriving at Csesarea, where did St. Paul go ? 

He made a hurried journey to Jerusalem, and arrived prob- 
ably just in time for the Passover. While at Jerusalem, he dis- 
covered that the Church there had grown but little since the de- 
cree of the council which had prejudiced the Jews against it, and 
was sadly poor and in need of assistance. 



63 



g. What resolution did St. Paul probably then arrive at ? 
Since the Church at Jerusalem had in a measure sacrificed 
its own prosperity for the sake of his Gentile converts, he 
would institute a great collection amongst these Gentiles in be- 
half of the mother Church. When he next returned to Jerusa- 
lem, it would be as the bearer of a substantial token of the Gen- 
tiles' appreciation of what the mother Church had done for them, 
lo. Whence did he go from Jerusalem ? 

Home again to Antioch to tell all his good news there. At 
Antioch he waited until Timothy rejoined him. 

IRo* 35* ffourtb IReview* 

1. What division did St. Paul and St. Barnabas make of their 
missionary field, and why ? 

2. How did St. Paul show his desire to keep the decrees of 
the council, as he journeyed through Galatia ? 

3. Why did St. Paul pass hurriedly through Asia, and whom 
did he meet at Troas ? 

4. What woman especially befriended St. Paul at Philippi ? 

5. Tell the story of his trial and imprisonment there. 

6. How was he driven out of Thessalonica ? 

7. Why did he leave Berea ? 

8. Tell the story of his trial before the Areopagus. 

9. How did St. Paul's trial before Gallio differ from his pre- 
vious trials ? 

10. Describe his return to Jerusalem. 



64 



PART V. 

THE THIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY. 

Time, a.d. 53 to a.d. 57. 

IRo* 36. Galatia anD Bpbesus. 

Read Acts xviii. 23 to xix. 8. 

1. When Timothy arrived at Antioch, what sad news did he 
bring with him ? 

He told St. Paul how the extreme Jewish wing of the Jeru- 
salem Church had made great mischief in Galatia, attempting to 
destroy his influence, and asserting that a devout Christian should 
be circumcised and keep the Jewish Law. This they pretended 
was the teaching of the other Apostles, and, ''Who was Paul," 
they asked, " that his word should be set against theirs ? " 

2. What did St. Paul immediately do ? 

He wrote a letter to the Galatian churches, in which he 
reminded them of their former love for him, showed them how 
the other Apostles had really been won over to his views, and not 
he to theirs, and made clear to them again that, in the presence 
of Christ's great love there needed no other law for a Christian 
but the law of an answering love. For them to become Jews was 
to go backward, not forward. (See Lesson 25, questions 9, 10.) 

3. After writing this letter, did St. Paul remain longer in 
Antioch ? 

No ; he hurried away, that he might reach Galatia as soon 
as possible. On his way he would revisit all the churches in 
Syria and Cilicia, following the same route as on his previous 
journey. With him he took as an additional companion, Titus, 
the Gentile Christian who had formerly assisted him during the 
famine at Jerusalem. The presence of this man in his company 
would tend to reassure the Gentile Christians of Galatia. 

4. After he had restored the Galatian churches to their senses, 
what important work did he commence among them ? 

Angry as he undoubtedly was at first, at the news of the 
Jewish interference in Galatia, now that the churches had been 
brought back to the right path, he was ready to forgive. Remem- 
bering the suffering Church in Jerusalem, and that it was after all 



65 



only a small party that had caused all the trouble, he began in 
Galatia the arrangements for the great collection upon which he 
had determined. 

5. While St. Paul was absent on his journey to Jerusalem, 
who came to Ephesus ? 

A certain Jew of Alexandria, ApoUos by name. Alexan- 
dria, a city of Egypt, was a place of considerable culture. 
Apollos v/as an eloquent man, possessed of much learning. He 
had known of John the Baptist and his mission, but he had yet to 
learn from Aquila and Priscilla of its fulfilment in Christ. He 
was brought into the Church, and became an earnest and effec- 
tive preacher. 

6. Whither had Apollos gone before St. Paul returned to 
Ephesus ? 

Upon his desiring to go to Greece, the brethren gave him 
letters to the Church at Corinth. There his eloquence secured 
him many listeners, and a great number of the Jews became con- 
verted as they listened to him proving from the Scriptures that 
Jesus was the Christ. 

7. Why was Ephesus an important town for the formation of 
a Church ? 

Situated in a lovely valley with an excellent harbor, it was 
the busiest and most prosperous town in the Province of Asia, of 
which it was the capital. A Church established in Ephesus 
would exert a wide influence. But what gave the city a peculiar 
importance was the fact that it was considered a sacred place. 
At Ephesus stood the great Temple of Diana, which had been 
over two hundred years in building, one of the seven wonders of 
the world. No expense had been spared in erecting this mag- 
nificent shrine, within which reposed only a huge misshapen block 
of wood, the image of the goddess supposed to have fallen from 
Heaven. 

8. How did St. Paul and his comrades reach Ephesus ? 
They probably journeyed directly westward across the 

Province of Asia, making no stops by the way. In September or 
October, 53, the city was reached. 

9. When he came to Ephesus, whom would St. Paul naturally 
seek out ? 

Aquila and Priscilla. He would find them probably in that 
quarter of the city where the trades-people lived. St. Paul joined 



66 



them, and, during his whole stay of two years in Ephesus, sup« 
ported himself by his own labor, receiving help from no man. 

lo. What little congregation in the city of Ephesus did this 
active, enterprising missionary discover, that had escaped the 
notice of Aquila and Priscilla ? 

A band of twelve Jews who in former days, before they 
left their home in Judea, had received baptism from the hands of 
John the Baptist. Faithful to his memory, they had clung 
closely together. St. Paul gave them new light, and they were 
baptized into the name of Jesus, and confirmed by the laying-on 
of hands. 



1Ro» 37. Bpbesus (Continueb)* 

Read Acts xix. 8 to 23. 

1. What do we know of the Jewish colony in Ephesus ? 

The commercial advantages of the city had attracted a 
large number of Jews there. Some of them were men of consid- 
erable influence and importance. 

2. How did they receive the Gospel ? 

For the space of three months St. Paul continued preach- 
ing in the synagogue. The Jews of Ephesus could not therefore 
have been as bigoted as those of many other cities visited by St. 
Paul. They resembled rather the Jews of Berea. Many con- 
verts were probably made. 

3. Why did not St. Paul continue to preach in the synagogue ? 
A rupture was inevitable. The more firmly attached St. 

Paul's followers grew to him, the further the unconvinced Jews 
separated themselves from him. To continue to preach in the 
synagogue would only have served to arouse increased bitterness 
of feeling. So St. Paul and his followers withdrew from the Jew- 
ish congregation. This was followed by no active persecution on 
the part of the Jews. 

4. Where did St. Paul thereafter teach ? 

In the school of a rhetorician named Tyrannus. This 
seems to have been a public building, and after business hours, 
when the philosopher would cease his lecturing, it was at St. 
Paul's service. Business hours lasted in these Asiatic cities from 
sunrise until an hour before noon, 11 a.m. 



67 



5. How was St. Paul's day therefore spent ? 

He himself tells us that he worked night and day. Before 
sunrise he was busy at his trade of tent-making. Then after 
eleven, when most men retired to the comfort of their homes, he 
would go to this lecture hall and there preach to such as could be 
gathered to listen. Then there would be many visits to make, 
especially as his fame spread wider and wider, and much to be 
done in organizing missions to the neighboring towns. St. Paul's 
life must indeed have been an active one. He writes to the 
Corinthian Church regarding these two years spent in Ephesus, 
" I die daily." 

6. What evil did St. Paul have especially to combat in 
Ephesus ? 

A rooted belief in the minds of the people in the power of 
magic. But he so far prevailed that many of the people brought 
to him their conjuring books containing the magic formulae by 
means of which they supposed the help of evil spirits could be 
secured. These St. Paul burned as so much trash. 

7. What were the general results of this prolonged stay in 
Ephesus ? 

The Word of God grew mightily and prevailed, not only in 
Ephesus, but in the other great towns of Asia, Pergamos, Smyrna, 
Sardis, Philadelphia, Collosse, Laodicea and Miletus. In this 
Province of Asia he also made successful arrangements for the 
great collection for the poor of Jerusalem. 

8. What plan had St. Paul now in mind ? 

To revisit the churches in the Provinces of Macedonia and 
Achaia, collect their offerings, journey with them to Jerusalem, 
and then undertake a fourth missionary journey, with Rome as 
its terminus. 

9. Why was St. Paul especially anxious at this time to revisit 
Corinth ? 

News had been brought hirn that the Church in that city 
had grown careless, and departed from the high standard of life 
becoming in a Christian community. He at once despatched 
Titus with a letter, which has been lost to us, in which he sought 
to recall the Church to a sense of its duty. While Titus was yet 
on his way, further tidings were brought St. Paul, still sadder 
in their nature, by members of the household of Chloe. The 
Church at Corinth was apparently on the swift road to ruin. It 



68 



was divided into factions, which hesitated not to use the names of 
St. Paul, St. Peter, Apollos, and even of Christ Himself, as party- 
watchwords, and there was much pride and bitter feeling. These 
tidings were confirmed by Apollos, who was lately come to Ephe- 
sus, having vainly tried to restore peace at Corinth. The strong 
hand of St. Paul was needed, 
lo. What did the Apostle do? 

He could not then himself leave Ephesus, so he sent Tim- 
othy, and with him a disciple of some note, Erastus, who should 
journey through Macedonia, making arrangements there for the 
great collection, which even in this moment of anxiety he would 
not neglect, and upon their arrival at Corinth should act together 
with Titus as the Apostle's delegates. Meanwhile, better tidings 
reached him. Stephanas, Achaicus and Fortunatus, members of 
the Corinthian Church, arrived at Ephesus with the comforting 
news that his first letter had been kindly received, and had ac- 
complished its purpose. Upon their returning, he sent by them 
a second letter (known to us as the First Epistle to the Corin- 
thians), in which he commends Timothy to the Church as his repre- 
sentative, and with brave, strong words seeks to end the discord 
in the Church, and lift it up to a higher level of life, promising 
that he himself will shortly come, he hopes not with a rod, but 
in love and in the spirit of meekness." 

flo* 38. Bpbesus (Conclubet))* 

Read Acts xix. 23 to xx. 

1. Who were the bitterest enemies of the Church in Ephesus.? 
The blind, unthinking mob, superstitious and easily ex- 
cited. St. Paul compares them to wild beasts against whom he 
waged battle. 

2. What brought this opposition to a head ? 

The great Temple of Diana afforded a means of livelihood 
to many of the citizens of Ephesus, attracting great throngs of 
pilgrims to the city for the annual festival in May, who would 
all need to be housed and fed, and would hardly be likely to 
leave the city without some purchases. Then, too, there were 
the sacrificial animals bought and sold in the city. The spread 
of Christianity had already, in the eyes of the people, caused a 
marked decrease in the number of pilgrims. 



69 



3. Who led this opposition ? 

Demetrius, the silversmith. He was a leading man in the 
several guilds of craftsmen that manufactured the small shrines 
of various material purchased by the devotees of Diana and of- 
fered to her in her temple. 

4. What steps did he take ? 

He called his associated craftsmen together, and showed 
them from a business standpoint what were the results of this 
man Paul's preachmg. His listeners soon became excited and 
hurried out into the streets, bent on mischief. 

5. What strange scene then transpired ? 

Their cries soon attracted a crowd, many of whom knew 
not what was the occasion of the tumult. As the throng in- 
creased, they made their way to the great theatre of the city, and 
soon its many tiers of seats were filled with an excited mob, all 
shouting at the top of their voices, "Great Diana!" "Great 
Diana! " and other meaningless words. 

6. What did the Jews do ? 

One of their leading men, fearing the results of this excite- 
ment, and anxious to make it clear that the Jews had no sympathy 
with the Christians, ascended the stage of the theatre, but the 
people would give him no opportunity to speak, and only cried 
out the more loudly, " Great Diana! " "Great Diana! " 

7. What did St. Paul desire to do ? 

Two of his companions, Gaius and Aristarchus, had been 
hurried into the theatre along with the crowd, and St. Paul, fear- 
ing for their safety, sought to go there himself, and, if possible, 
pacify the people, but the brethren would not suffer him so to 
risk his life, nor would some of the Asiarchs who were friendly 
to him. 

8. Who were these Asiarchs ? 

They were the priests in Asia of the Imperial religion, which 
consisted in the worship of Rome and the Emperor. They had 
but little sympathy with the howling mob. (See Lesson 2, ques- 
tion 8.) 

9. How long did the tumult last ? 

About two hours, and then the town clerk succeeded in 
quieting the people. In no other but an Eastern city could such 
a scene have transpired. In the wildest excitement, the people 



70 



had shouted themselves hoarse without knowing why, and yet 
they did not seem to realize how foolishly they had acted. 

10. With what words did the town clerk dismiss the assembly? 
He reminded the people that the Governor of Asia might at 
any moment return to Ephesus, and then they would be compelled 
to render an account of this disturbance. " Everybody knows 
how great Diana is and nobody can make her any the less great. 
These Christians have committed no crimes. If Demetrius and 
his fellow craftsmen have any charges to make against them, 
there are the courts and ^ro^^er legal proceedings." 

1Flo» 39» 1Re\?isitmG tbe Cburcbes. 

Read Acts xx. i to 4; II. Cor. ix. i to g. 

1. After the Ephesian riot where did St. Paul go ? 

He now resolved to fulfil his plan of revisiting his churches, 
and making his collections. From Ephesus he took a coasting 
vessel and came to Troas. 

2. Did he remain any length of time at Troas ? 

Yes; we learn from II. Cor. ii. 2 that a great door was opened 
to him there. He found ready and willing listeners. Besides, if 
it was January when he reached Troas, the voyage across the open 
sea was not likely to be made until March (year 56). In Troas 
St. Paul expected to meet Titus, whom he had sent with his first 
letter, and was much disappointed at his not appearing. 

3. What do we know of Titus ? 

He had not probably been with St. Paul on the first and sec- 
ond journeys. He was still a stranger to the Galatian Church when 
St. Paul wrote his letter to them (Gal. ii. i). Probably St. Paul 
did not take him on these first journeys, because even when he 
had brought him to Jerusalem to assist in the distribution of food, 
the Jews had objected to him as an uncircumcised heathen. 
Throughout the third journey, except during his missions to Cor- 
inth, he was a companion of St. Paul. His name is never men- 
tioned in the Acts, probably because he was a relative of St. 
Luke. One of St. Paul's last letters was written to him. (See 
Lesson 36, question 3.) 

4. Where did St. Paul go from Ephesus ? 

He sailed to Philippi, and visited his much-loved Macedo- 
nian churches. There he met Timothy, Erastus and Titus, and 



71 



learned that his instructions regarding the great collection had 
been carefully carried out, and large sums had been raised. He 
spent the summer and autumn of 56 in the Province of Macedo- 
nia. 

5. How did the poor people of the Christian churches succeed 
in raising these large sums? 

Upon the first day of the week (the Lord's Day, known 
to us as Sunday), every one of them laid by a little from his earn- 
ings. This was continued weekly. The giving was wholly spon- 
taneous, without compulsion. 

6. What arrangement did St. Paul make in regard to the 
bringing of these collections to Jerusalem ? 

At his request, the various churches appointed delegates 
who were to accompany him and see to its distribution. This he 
did partly to protect himself from slander, and partly the more to 
impress the mother Church at Jerusalem with the gratitude of 
the Gentile churches. The Provinces of Achaia, Macedonia, 
Asia, and Galatia were thus all represented (Acts xx. 4). 

7. Was St. Paul's stay in Macedonia wholly pleasant ? 
Undoubtedly the loyalty and generosity of the Macedonian 

Christians did much to cheer him, but he was still haunted by 
anxieties regarding the churches both of Corinth and Ephesus, 
and his old enemies in Macedonia continued active (H. Cor. 
vii. 5). 

8. What important letter did St. Paul write from Macedonia ? 
A third letter to the Church at Corinth, our second Epistle to 

the Corinthians. His envoys, meeting him at Philippi, had 
brought him good tidings as to the reception of his second letter 
(our First Epistle). This third letter had as its special object to 
arouse the Corinthians to more generous efforts in the matter of 
the collection. It was also a defence on St. Paul's part of his 
ministry and authority, which some still gainsaid. He sent this 
letter by the hands of Titus, and with him went two brethren rep- 
resenting the churches of Macedonia and Asia, probably Luke 
and Tychicus. 

9. Where did St. Paul go from Macedonia? 

To Corinth, where he remained setting matters in order 
during the three winter months of 56. His plan was to sail 
again in March, as he had done three years previous, in the ship 
containing the Passover Pilgrims to Caesarea. Jerusalem was 



72 



then to be visited, and the collection presented. After this was 
done, he might fulfil his dream of visiting Rome. With this end 
in view, he wrote at this time his famous letter to the Roman 
Church. 

lo. How were St. Paul's plans first disturbed ? 

By the discovery of a plot' formed by the Jews, who ex- 
pected to be his sailing companions in the Passover ship, to mur- 
der him on the voyage. This might easily have been accom- 
plished, and his death attributed to accident. St. Paul's preach- 
ing, so effective in winning to the Church the proselytes of the 
synagogues and thus destroying the influence of Judaism in the 
Provinces, haa made him peculiarly hateful to the Jews. 

IRo* 40o XTbe IReturn IDopacje^ 

Acts XX. 5 to xxi. 7. 

1. How did the various delegates of the churches assemble ? 
The original plan had been that the delegates from Corinth 

and Macedonia should sail with St. Paul in the pilgrim ship from 
Corinth, and when this ship put in at Ephesus the delegates from 
Asia should join them there. But when the fiendish plot of the 
Jews was disclosed, St. Paul and his companions decided to re- 
turn to Philippi, and after the Passover sail thence to Troas. 
Word was sent to the Asiatic delegates to meet them at that port. 
If all went well they could hope to be at Jerusalem for the Feast 
of Pentecost. 

2. How was the last day at Troas spent ? 

The united band of delegates were delayed a week at 
Troas before they could find a suitable vessel wherein to con- 
tinue' their voyage. The evening of the Lord's Day immediately 
preceding their departure, the Christians gathered together to 
partake of the Lord's Supper at the hands of St. Paul, perhaps 
for the last time, for the plot at Corinth had made it evident 
that the journey to Jerusalem was fraught with considerable 
danger. 

3. What happened at this assembly ? 

The room where the meeting was held was densely crowded, 
and lit with many lamps. The atmosphere was close and heated. 
St. Paul continued his preaching until midnight ; it was hard to 
conclude what might be his last words to them. A young man 



73 



named Eutychus fell asleep and, slipping from his seat in the 
window, fell three stories to the ground. All were overcome by 
the frightful accident, except St. Paul. He immediately hurried 
down to the street and, taking the young man in his arms, as- 
sured the excited people that he was not dead. 

4. Then what occurred ? 

Returning to the upper room, St. Paul administered the 
Lord's Supper to the Church, and continued his preaching till 
dawn, when the ship in which the delegates intended to sail 
would weigh anchor. He himself, however, did not embark, re- 
maining at Troas until the young man's recovery was beyond a 
doubt. A short land journey across the peninsula, which the 
ship would have to double, would make it easily possible for him 
to overtake his companions at Assos. 

5. Where was their next stopping place 

In the ^gean Sea, during the spring and summer months, 
the wind in the daytime usually blows from the north. At sun- 
set there is a calm, followed by a gentle night breeze springing 
from the south. Thus as the ship which carried the Apostle and 
his companions was journeying south, it could only make prog- 
ress during the day and must cast anchor at night. The voyage 
was therefore a tedious one. At length Miletus was reached, 
where there would likely be a stay of many days. 

6. For whom did St. Paul send at Miletus ? 

For the elders of the Church at Ephesus. It was prob- 
ably three days at least before they could reach him. At Troas, 
he might have shipped in some merchantman intending to trade 
at Ephesus, but in his anxiety to be at Jerusalem for the Feast of 
Pentecost he chose this perhaps speedier vessel which passed by 
that port. 

7. What message did St. Paul deliver to the Ephesian elders ? 
It was an earnest and pathetic address, the last, he told 

them, they should probably ever receive from him. He reminded 
them of his life and labors among them ; he warned them of the 
many dangers they might have to face ; he told them that above 
all other things Christianity consisted in being unselfish, and 
concluded with a plea that they should remember the beautiful 
words of the Lord Jesus, how He said, It is more blessed to 
give than to receive." 

8. How were they affected by this address ? 



74 



All eyes were wet with tears at the thought that they should 
never see the Apostle's face again. After they had prayed to- 
gether, they all lovingly embraced the faithful friend who had 
done so much for them. 

9. Where was the next landing of the delegates ? 

The ship sailed along leisurely to Patara, a port in the 
south of Lycia, where the travellers forsook the coasting vessel 
that had hitherto borne them, and embarked in a large mer- 
chantman sailing directly to Tyre. At Tyre this vessel paused 
seven days unloading its freight. 

TO. What use did the delegates make of this delay ? 

They sought out and visited the Christians at Tyre. They 
were most cordially received. These Tyrians, however, en- 
deavored to dissuade them from their journey to Jerusalem, warn • 
ing them that it was most dangerous, considering the hatred 
which the Jews then felt towards the great Apostle. After a 
cordial farewell, the delegates re-embarked, and sailed to Ptole- 
mais. The stay there of a single night gave them the opportun- 
ity of greeting the brethren. On the next day, probably about 
May 14th, they reached Csesarea. 

1Ro» 41 ♦ UbeDistt to Jerusalem^ 

Read Acts xxi. 7 to 26. 

1. Would they remain long at Caesarea } 

Their intention was to have spent but a few days there, for 
the Feast of Pentecost occurred May 28th in the year 57, and 
they were anxious to be at Jerusalem during that holy season. 

2. At whose home did they stay at Caesarea ? 

At the home of Philip the Deacon, who had made his 
residence there, and was evidently held in high esteem by the 
Church in that city. 

3. While they abode with St. Philip, what prophet made his 
reappearance ? 

The Prophet Agabus, who many years previous had an- 
nounced at Antioch the approaching famine in Judea, and whose 
announcement had led to the first collection for the poor of Je- 
rusalem. He now comes to meet the bearer of this second and 
larger collection, and to warn him of his danger. (See Lesson 15, 
question 6.) 



75 



4. How did he do this ? 

Taking the girdle of St. Paul from him, he bound with it 
his own hands and feet, saying, " Thus shall the Jews do to the 
owner of this girdle, and they shall deliver him into the hands of 
the Gentiles." 

5. Was St. Paul terrified by this ? 

No; but the delegates were, much disheartened by this 
third warning, and begged St. Paul, with tears in their eyes, for 
the present to defer his plan of bringing the offerings of the 
churches to Jerusalem, But St. Paul would not be persuaded. 
He was ready, he said calmly, " not only to be bound, but to die 
at Jerusalem for Jesus' sake." " God's will be done," said the 
delegates sadly, and ceased their efforts. St. Paul, however, 
seems to have yielded to their wishes so far as to remain in 
C^sarea until after Pentecost, when the danger would be les- 
sened by the departure to their homes of his bitterest enemies, 
the Jews from the provinces. 

6. How did they journey from Csesarea to Jerusalem .? 
Probably they rode on horses. Some of the brethren of 

Csesarea accompanied them as far as a village where lived 
Mnason of Cyprus, a believer, who gladly entertained them for 
the night. 

7. Upon arriving at Jerusalem, to whom did they straitly 

go? 

To St. James the Bishop, and him they told of the great suc- 
cess of the missions to the Gentiles, and of the generous offerings 
of which they were the bearers. The elders of the Jerusalem 
Church were present at this interview, and all praised God for 
the great work that had been done. 

8. How had the Church in the Holy City fared ? 

It was much stronger than when St. Paul had visited it 
three years ago, but amongst the new converts were many zealous 
rather for the law than for Christ, who, notwithstanding all that 
had occurred, still believed that the Gentiles should not be ad- 
mitted to the Church, except they were willing to live as Jews. 
To a large extent, therefore, the Church had drifted away from 
the position taken in the decrees of the council. St. James alone 
of all the Apostles was left in the city, and he seems to have been 
unable to stem the current. 

9. What danger did St. James and the elders fear } 



76 



Lest the prejudices of these Christian Jews, based upon ex- 
aggerated reports of St. Paul's doings which had reached them 
through the Jews of the provinces, should lead them to treat the 
missionaries unkindly. They had heard that St. Paul even taught 
the Jews to despise and forsake their own Law. 
lo. What concessions did they ask of St. Paul ? 

That he should in a public manner show his sympathy with 
these weaker brethren by furnishing four poor men, Jewish 
Christians, with the means wherewith to fulfil a vow which they 
had made, at the same time purifying himself by the usual cere- 
monies and sacrifices. This St. Paul willingly undertook, and 
was doubtless glad of the opportunity thus to manifest that char- 
ity which he had everywhere taught. 

IFlo^ 42. XLbc Hpostle's Hrrest 

Read Acts xxi. 26 to 40. 

1. How long would the redemption of the four brethren last.? 
It would be seven days before the tedious ceremonial was 

completed, and the last offering made. The room in which the 
Nazarites and St. Paul would during that time be quartered, 
opened out on the second terrace of the Temple, the court of 
Israel. As most of the Jews who came to the Temple for private 
devotions would not be likely to penetrate beyond the first 
court, that of the Gentiles, St. Paul's presence for a time remained 
unknown. 

2. What unfortunate event happened on the last of the seven 
days ? 

Some Jews of the synagogue of Ephesus, who had also 
come up to keep the Feast of Pentecost and had tarried in the 
city, recognized St. Paul in the inner court of the Temple. As 
they had formerly met him in the streets of the city in the com- 
pany of one Trophimus, an Ephesian Gentile, they leaped at once 
to the conclusion that St. Paul's present companions were heathen 
whom he had introduced into the sacred place. 

3. What did these men do ? 

On the walls of the Court of Israel, death was announced 
as the punishment of any Gentile who should enter its precincts. 
Surely he who had brought the heathen there deserved to die. 
They sprang upon St. Paul and, seizing him, dragged him to the 



77 



steps descending to the Court of the Gentiles, which was as usual 
thronged with Jews. " Help, men of Israel ! Help ! " they shouted. 
"Here is the fellow who has been everywhere the worst enemy of 
Israel, and now he has defied its laws by bringing his heathen 
friends into the inner temple." 

4. What then occurred ? 

The Jews were aroused to instant fury ; they rushed up the 
stairs that led to the upper terrace and fell to beating the Apostle. 
With difficulty the officers of the Temple succeeded in pushing 
the crowd back and closing the gates, that no crime might be 
committed in the sacred inner court. 

5. How was St. Paul's life preserved? 

Down in the lower court the Jews continued to beat and 
abuse the Apostle, and would soon have torn him in pieces had 
they not heard the steady tramp of the Roman guard advancing 
in double quick time. Before them they fell back, and Lysias, 
the commander, quickly seized the Apostle and ordered him 
bound with chains. 

6. How came these soldiers to be on hand ? 

In the fortress Antonia, which overlooked the Temple 
courts, the Roman Governor of the Province of Judea always kept 
a strong detachment of soldiers, especially during the great feasts, 
when riots were sure to occur. They found plenty of occupation. 

7. Who was the commander of these troops ? 

Lysias a Tribune, a Greek by birth, who had purchased for 
a large sum of money the right of Roman citizenship from the 
Emperor Claudius. Thereafter he called himself, as was cus- 
tomary, Claudius Lysias. 

8. Whom did Lysias suppose St. Paul to be ? 

Not long before a certain Egyptian Jew, the leader of a 
large band of Jewish zealots, had given him no little trouble. 
His followers had been dispersed, but the Egyptian had escaped 
and gone into hiding. Lysias supposed that he had now caught him. 

9. How did he discover his mistake ? 

On the way to the Tower the Jews pressed closely in upon 
the soldiers, shouting their curses upon the prisoner. St. Paul 
was so weakened by the blows he had received that Lysias com- 
manded the soldiers to carry him, he himself walking with drawn 
sword close beside his prisoner. St. Paul then bent down and 
said to him in Greek, ** Can I ask a favor of thee ? " 



78 



lo. What did Lysias say ? 

He was surprised at hearing the familiar accents of his own 
tongue. " Who art thou ? " he asked of St. Paul, and the latter 
told him that he was a citizen of Tarsus of Cilicia, no mean city, 
and besought of him permission to speak to the people. 

1Ro» 43» ffurtber proceebmgs against St. pauU 

Read Acts xxi. 40 to xxiii. 12. 

1. When Lysias had granted this permission, what use did St. 
Paul make of his opportunity ? 

Wounded as he was, with the chains still clinging to him, 
St. Paul stood at the top of the stairs that led to the fortress. Beck- 
oning with his hand, at last he secured silence, and then, in the 
Hebrew tongue, with wonderful calmness and self-possession, he 
told the Jews the reason for his strange life. 

2. What was the substance of this defence ? 

He reminded the Jews how once he had been even more 
zealous than they for the Law, and would himself conscientiously 
have done to another what they were now doing to him; he told 
them how the vision on the road to Damascus had checked him 
in his course of persecution; how Ananias, a devout Jewish Chris- 
tian of Damascus, had opened his eyes to see the truth; how he 
had come back to the city of Jerusalem to undo the errors of his 
past life, and would gladly have stayed there and toiled for the 
Church he had once so nearly destroyed, but how finally God by 
especial revelation had appointed him a missionary of the Glad 
Tidings to the Gentiles in far-off countries. 

3. What was the result of his speech ? 

They heard him quietly until he reached the conclusion; 
but as soon as he spoke of the Gentiles the mob again grew ex- 
cited. "Away with the fellow," they shouted. " Kill him, kill him! 
He is not fit to live," and they tore off their garments and threw 
handfuls of dust in the air to show their scorn and indignation. 

4. What did Lysias then do ? 

He ordered St. Paul to be brought into the castle, and as 
he, not understanding Hebrew, had not yet been able to make out 
what the trouble was all about, he bade the soldiers to scourge 
St. Paul with the thongs until he made a confession. 

5. How were the soldiers prevented from doing this ? 



79 



They were about to strip St. Paul's clothes from him, when 
he asked the centurion who was in charge of the examination 
whether it was lawful so to scourge a Roman citizen before he 
had been tried. 

6. When the centurion heard these words, what did he do ? 
He hastened at once to the Tribune and reported them to 

him. The latter hurried to the scene, much disturbed. " Art 
thou a Roman citizen? " he asked of the evidently poor Jew be- 
fore him. St. Paul assented. " I paid a great price for the priv- 
ilege, a price beyond your reach," said the officer. " The citi- 
zenship is mine by birth," answered St. Paul. 

7. In what quandary was the Roman officer now placed ? 
After discovering that his prisoner was a Roman citizen he 

felt that it was necessary to proceed with great caution. He 
could not release him, because of the evident earnestness of the 
Jews in their persecution, nor would it do to punish him unless 
he had committed some crime. This Roman might demand a 
trial before the Governor. 

8. What steps did Lysias take ? 

On the following morning he requested the high priest to 
summon the Sanhedrin. Into their presence he brought his 
prisoner. The High Priest Ananias was a man of most unscrupu- 
lous character, belonging to that same wicked family of which 
Annas and Caiaphas were members. St. Paul attempted to re- 
peat his defence, but was only answered by violent interruptions. 
At last, his patience well nigh exhausted, in the hope of thereby 
securing a hearing, he cried out in the council, ''Brethren, I am 
a Pharisee, and it is really the possibility of the Resurrection that 
is now in question." But this only increased the clamor, Phari- 
see and Sadducee being thereby pitted against each other. At a 
prearranged signal given by Lysias, who feared that his prisoner 
would be torn in pieces, the soldiers entered the council hall and 
carried St. Paul back again to the castle. Lysias had learned 
nothing from this trial. 

9. How did the Christian Jews treat St. Paul ? 

The Church as a whole seems to have shown but little 
sympathy. Probably St. James and the elders did all they could 
for him. The majority were indifferent to his fate. This 
man in their eyes was as much a foe to real Christianity as to 
Judaism. 



8o 



lo. The night after the trial before the Sanhedrin, what com- 
forting vision came to St. Paul in his lonely prison cell ? 

The Lord stood by him to encourage him, and promised him 
that he should yet fulfil his dream of preaching in Rome. 

no. 44» 3f iftb IReview* 

1. When St. Paul returned from Jerusalem to Antioch, at the 
close of the second missionary journey, what did he learn from 
St. Timothy regarding the state of affairs in Galatia, and what 
letter did he write ? 

2. Who was ApoUos ? 

3. Where was Ephesus, and why was it an important city.? 

4. What trouble was there in Corinth, and what three letters, 
did St. Paul write to the Church there ? 

5. Describe the tumult in Ephesus. 

6. What great collection did St. Paul institute in all the 
churches on his third missionary journey, and why ? 

7. What letter did St. Paul write from Corinth, and why ? 

8. What route did the delegates follow in their journey to 
Jerusalem ? 

9. How did St. Paul come to be imprisoned in Jerusalem ? 
10. Describe his trial before the Sanhedrin. 



PART VI. 

FINISHING THEIR TASKS, 

1Ro» 45, Xlbe ffirst XTriaL 

Read Acts xxiii. 12 toxxiv. 23. 

1. What plot was framed against St. Paul by the Jews ? 
Forty men, reckless, unscrupulous, belonging to a band of 

zealots, bound themselves by a vow neither to eat nor drink un- 
til they had murdered St. Paul. The priests were privy to this 
plot, and their part was to request the Tribune that St. Paul might 
be brought before the Sanhedrin for another trial. On his way 
to the council hall, these men intended to attack his guard and 
slay him. 

2. How was the fulfilment of this plot prevented ? 



8i 

St. Paul's nephew, who seems to have been so closely as- 
sociated with his uncle's enemies that the plot was revealed to 
him, could not bear to keep silence, and so be party to his death. 
At the last moment he hurried to the castle and told St. Paul of 
his danger. 

3. What did St. Paul do ? 

He sent him at once to the Tribune, before whom he made 
a clear and frank confession of the horrible plot. 

4. What steps did the Tribune take ? 

That night, under a large escort of soldiers, lest the 
information he had received should of itself have been 
part of a plot to decoy the prisoner out of the city, and there fall 
upon him, he sent St. Paul off to Csesarea. When the Jews ap- 
peared the next morning to ask that St. Paul be brought before 
them again, they were told that the prisoner was gone and the 
matter was now in the Governor's hands. Before him they must 
make their accusation. 

5. What letter did Lysias send with St. Paul? 

Not a very truthful letter. He seems to have been afraid 
lest St. Paul should report to the Governor his attempted scourg- 
ing, so he writes that when St. Paul was first seized by the Jews, 
understanding that he was a Roman, he had interfered to protect 
him — a deliberate lie. He adds, however, truthfully that he had 
no charge to make against the prisoner and knew not whereof 
the Jews accused him. 

6. Who was at this time Governor of the Province of Judea ? 
The Emperor Claudius had been peculiarly kind to the 

Jews of Syria, and the Governor of Judea, Felix by name, had 
been appointed at the request of the former high priest, Jona- 
than. This Felix had once been a slave. He was the 
brother of Pallas, the Emperor's favorite, and therefore did pretty 
much what he pleased in the province, protected by so great 
influence at court. He was cruel, greedy and selfish, and the 
Jews had abundant reason to regret the high priest's choice. 

7. How did Felix treat St. Paul ? 

The favorable letter sent by Lysias prejudiced him in the 
prisoner's favor. Here was a Roman citizen who had done no 
harm but was simply the victim of Jewish fanaticism. He placed 
him under guard therefore in a portion of his own royal residence 
and not in the common prison. 



82 



8. Who appeared before him to accuse St. Paul. 

The high priest Ananias. Not being skilled, however, in 
the ways of Roman courts, he engaged to represent him a cer- 
tain orator TertuUus, probably a young lawyer who had come to 
the province to make his start in life. 

9. What was the nature of the speech of Tertullus ? 

He began, as was customary, with abundant flattery of the 
Governor. He then made no direct accusation against St. Paul, 
for he had none to make, but tried rather to convince the Gov- 
ernor that as the Apostle's offence was wholly against Jewish law, 
Lysias ought not to have interfered, implying that the Jews would 
be very grateful if Felix would undo Lysias' mistake and return 
the prisoner to them for trial. Tertullus does not seem to have 
known that St. Paul was a Roman citizen. 
10. What was St. Paul's answer ? 

Simply a manly statement of facts. He reviews the pro- 
ceedings of the twelve days since he had left Caesarea to go up to 
Jerusalem with the offerings for his nation, and defies his enemies 
to show how in any way he had stirred up strife, except by his un- 
fortunate remark in the Sanhedrin regarding the resurrection. 
Felix of course could come to no decision, and he remanded the 
case until Lysias should come down to Caesarea. 

Bo. 46* TOe Hppeal to d^esar* 

Read Acts xxiv. 23 to xxv. 13. 

1. How long a time did St. Paul remain a captive in the pal- 
ace at Caesarea ? 

Probably two long weary years. Although his captivity 
was not severe and his friends, amongst whom were the delegates 
of the churches, were allowed to visit him and minister to his 
necessities, carrying his messages to the distant churches and 
bringing tidings from them, yet, to so active a man as St. Paul, 
this captivity must have been almost unendurable. 

2. How did Felix treat him ? 

He sent for him often to converse with him. On one oc- 
casion, in the presence of his wife Drusilla, a Jewish princess of 
evil fame, St. Paul boldly preached the Gospel, reasoning so pow- 
erfully about righteousness, temperance and judgment to come, 
that Felix trembled before this inspired teacher. However, the 



83 



greed of the man was so great that he still kept St. Paul in prison, 
hoping that he who had so large an influence in the great cities 
of the Empire that he could collect a vast sum of money for the 
poor of Jerusalem would be able to obtain a still vaster sum 
wherewith to purchase his own release. 

3. What happened at the end of two years ? 

A riot occurred in Caesarea between the Greeks and the 
Jews. The Jews were prevailing and Felix ordered his soldiers 
to charge them. Many Jews were slain and several houses in the 
Jewish quarter were sacked and destroyed. The Jews lodged a 
complaint at Rome. Claudius was dead and Nero had succeeded 
him. He was largely under the influence of the beautiful Jewess 
Poppsea. Felix was summoned to Rome to stand trial, and barely 
escaped with his life. Wishing to mollify the Jews as much as 
possible, he treated St. Paul more cruelly before his departure, 
and left him in chains. 

4. Who succeeded Felix ? 

Porcius Festus was appointed by Nero in his stead. He, 
like Gallio, the Governor of Achaia before whom St. Paul had 
been brought for trial, was a Roman gentleman, upright, consci- 
entious and just. His first step upon entering his province was 
to go up to Jerusalem and acquaint himself with the state of 
affairs in that, his most important and troublesome city. 

5. With what request did the Jews meet the new Governor? 
The two years' imprisonment had not satisfied their thirst 

for vengeance upon St. Paul. They asked as a favor that the 
prisoner in Csesarea might be returned to them for trial. They 
expected that the new Governor would willingly accord them this 
favor in the first days of his office. St. Paul would never have 
reached Jerusalem, for the Jews had planned to slay him on the 
journey. 

6. Did Festus grant this request ? 

No; he would make no promises until he had enquired into 
matters. He told the disappointed Jews that they must come 
down with him to Caesarea and there prefer their charges in the 
presence of the prisoner, who would be given an opportunity to 
answer. 

7. Did the Jews do this ? 

Yes; but this time they adopted a different policy than at 
the former trial. They engaged no lawyer, and did not try to 



84 



prove that the case was one which should be tried in a Jew- 
ish court. They trusted rather to downright lying, and made 
manifold charges against St. Paul, amongst others the terrible one 
that he was a traitor to Caesar. 

8. How did St. Paul fare in this second trial ? 

He quietly but firmly insisted upon the Jews proving their 
charges, which of course they were unable to do. Festus had 
given them no time to prepare false witnesses. 

9. What action did the Governor take ? 

He found it hard to believe that the Jews could be so zeal- 
ous where there was no offence. The case could probably be 
better understood by him if tried in his presence before a Jewish 
court. Besides, he was unwilling to begin his career by unnec- 
essarily aggravating the Jews. So he asked St. Paul if he would 
consent to go to Jerusalem under his protection and there be 
tried. 

10. What answer did St. Paul make ? 

He again protested his innocence. He knew the Jews bet- 
ter than Festus, and refused as a Roman to be tried before any 
but a Roman court. If Festus declined to acquit him, he ap- 
pealed to Caesar. Festus conferred with his council. There was 
no help for it; a Roman citizen, unless taken in the very act of 
committing a crime, had a right to make this appeal. When once 
the words were uttered, the case was taken out of the hands of 
the Provincial Governor, and the prisoner must be immediately 
transferred to Rome. " Thou hast appealed to Caesar," said Fes- 
tus, using the legal formula, " unto Caesar shalt thou go.'' 

1Flo» 47» ^be BcGinnma of tbe Do^age^ 

Read Acts xxv. 13 to xxvii. 13. 

I. What happened while Festus was seeking some means 
whereby to transport his prisoner ? 

Agrippa II. and his wife Bernice came to Caesarea. This 
king had not the authority of the Agrippa I. by whom the Church 
had been persecuted, but only ruled over a few lesser cities, and 
appointed the high priests at Jerusalem. He was bound to pay 
his respects to the new Roman Governor. Learning from him 
the story of St. Paul, he expressed a strong desire to see and 
hear him. 



85 



2. What did Festus do ? 

He set a day for the audience, and at the appointed time 
the pale and emaciated prisoner, chained to the soldier who 
guarded him, was ushered into the presence of the courtliest so- 
ciety that Caesarea could boast. Before these noble lords and 
ladies, St. Paul expounded his Gospel, telling them the story of 
his life. He addressed his remarks especially to King Agrippa 
who, as a Jew, would the better understand his allusions. 

3. Ere he had concluded, what did Festus do ? 

Fearing lest his royal audience should be wearied, Festus 
interrupted St. Paul with the words, " Paul, thou art beside thy- 
self ; much learning doth make thee mad." " I am not mad," 
answered the Apostle, "but utter sober words and true." Turn- 
ing to King Agrippa, he made one more effort to awaken the 
interest of the careless king. " King Agrippa, believest thou 
the Prophets? I know that thou believest." But the king only 
laughed. " So easily wouldst thou persuade me to be a Chris- 
tian ? " he said. I would that ye were all such as I," answered 
the Apostle, sadly, "except these chains." The prisoner was 
then remanded. All agreed that he had done nothing worthy of 
death or bonds, and might have been set at liberty were it not 
for his appeal to Caesar. 

4. How was St. Paul transferred to Rome ? 

In the care of a centurion belonging to that detachment 
of officers commonly called the Augustus Band, of which the 
Emperor made use to convey his instructions to his various 
camps. This officer was returning to Rome in charge of a com- 
pany of soldiers and some prisoners. The latter probably were 
already condemned to death and were being conveyed to Rome 
to meet the demands of the gladiatorial shows. 

5. Who journeyed with St. Paul ? 

Luke and Aristarchus, and they must have gone as his 
slaves, for so only would their presence have been permitted. 
St. Paul seems to have been treated with much consideration by 
the centurion. 

6. In what vessel did the centurion embark his company } 
No ship could be found about to sail from Caesarea direct 

to Rome. He was obliged, therefore, to begin his journey in a 
coasting vessel, hoping in some port to find a swifter and more 
suitable ship. Embarking about the middle of August, 59, slowly 



86 



they cruised along the Syrian and Cilician coast, availing them- 
selves of favorable winds and currents until they came to Myra. 

7. What occurred at Myra? 

There, as he had hoped, the centurion found a corn ship 
sailing from Egypt, the great granary of the old world, to Rome. 
This was the usual port where such vessels put in on their voy- 
ages. To this larger and swifter ship the centurion transferred 
his charges. 

8. How did the travellers now fare ? 

From Myra to Cnidus they beat their way slowly in the 
face of prevailing winds from the west, but further in a direct 
westerly course they did not venture to sail, fearing lest the north 
winds, which usually blew down the yEgean Sea at that time of 
the year, should drive them on the rockbound northern coast of 
Crete. So they turned and sailed southwest to reach the lee 
shore of that island. 

9. What port did they there enter ? 

Cruising along the southern coast of Crete, somewhere 
about the 25th of September, they ran into the port of the city of 
Lasea, known as Fair Havens. There unfavorable winds de- 
tained them until after the great Jewish Fast Day, the Atone- 
ment, October 5th. 

10. What question then came up for settlement ? 

As to what harbor it was advisable to winter in. Whether 
they should remain where they were, or push on to Phenice, the 
only really safe port on the Cretan coast. After November set 
in, sailing would become dangerous and further progress be im- 
possible until spring. The centurion seemingly called a council 
to decide, over which, the corn ship being a government vessel, 
he, as the officer of highest rank, presided. The captain and sail- 
ing-master both advised to continue the voyage, but St. Paul, 
also consulted as a traveller of much experience, warned them 
of danger ahead, and counselled remaining. The centurion was 
guided by the captain and sailing-master, and it was determined 
to press on. 



87 



Read Acts xxvii. 13 to xxviii. 

1. How did the travellers fare when they loosed from Fair 
Havens ? 

A gentle south wind made it possible for them to continue 
their westerly course, but as the ships of those days could not 
sail very close to the wind, it was with considerable difficulty that 
they weathered Cape Matala, which projected far out into the sea. 

2. As they passed on into the Gulf of Messara, how did their 
prospects change ? 

It seemed at first as if they would make an easy passage with 
a favorable wind to the desired haven, and probably the captain 
and sailing-master were already congratulating themselves upon 
their superior wisdom; but suddenly down from the Cretan 
mountains, which towered above them nearly 7,000 feet, a furious 
squall from the northeast came rushing upon them. 

3. In the presence of this danger, what did the captain do ? 
There was nothing for it but to let the ship go before the 

wind. The sailing vessel of ancient times, with its one huge sail, 
could not venture to stand up to a strong wiiad. The strain on 
the mast would tend to part its timbers. As it was, this vessel, 
though scudding before the wind, could not have long withstood 
this strain. The squall had struck them so suddenly that there 
had been no time to shorten sail. 

4. What saved the ship ? 

Runniag thus before the wind, they came to the Island 
Cauda. The vessel was then headed about and allowed to drift 
with her right side towards the wind under the lee of the island. 

5. What three necessary operations were here performed ? . 
With difficulty the little boat which trailed behind was se- 
cured and fastened on deck. (St. Luke probably mentions this 
first because he, himself, helped to accomplish it.) While this 
was being done, great ropes were passed under the bull of the ship 
to hold its timbers together. As soon as the island afforded suf- 
ficient protection, the sailors shortened sail, leaving up Just 
enough to keep the ship headed to the wind. If they had con- 
tinued to drive before the wind, they would have stranded the 
vessel on the African quicksands. 



88 



6. What were they compelled to do the next day ? 
Drifting in this manner with the ship's head to the north, 

and great waves beating against its starboard side, they were in 
every danger of foundering. The rocking of the vessel made it 
advisable that they should cast overboard all the cargo of the 
ship, and as much of its furnishings as could be spared. 

7. Who alone showed calmness in the general panic? 
Under darkened skies the vessel drifted to a seemingly 

certain doom. Leaks were already reported and all hope seemed 
gone. With pale and anxious faces the men silently waited for 
the inevitable end. Then St. Paul showed what faith can do for 
a man. Unmoved by the danger, he spoke words of cheer and 
comfort to his comrades, telling them that God had assured him 
that not one life should be lost. As for himself, God had prom- 
ised him that he should be His witness in Rome, and in Him he 
trusted. " We shall certainly be cast upon some island," he said; 
" there is yet room for hope." 

8. On the fourteenth night of this drifting, what occurred ? 
The sailors thought they heard the sound of breakers beat- 
ing against the coast. Soundings were taken and they discov- 
ered that they were running on some shore. As the breakers 
warned them that it was a dangerous coast, they decided to wait till 
morning before attempting to beach the ship. The sail was 
taken in and four anchors run out from the stern. The cow- 
ardly sailors, now that land was near, under the pretence of run- 
ning out bow anchors, were preparing to let down the boat and 
make their own escape. The little boat was already over the 
side of the ship when St. Paul warned the centurion that if the 
sailors deserted there would be no hope for the passengers. The 
swords of the soldiers quickly cut the ropes that held the boat, 
and it fell splashing into the sea. 

9. As morning dawned, what advice did St. Paul give ? 
That they should all break their fast and thus prepare them- 
selves for the final struggle. He, himself, set the example by break- 
ing bread in their midst, after he had given thanks to God. Then 
the provisions were thrown overboard to lighten the vessel, a 
small sail was set, the cables were cut, the rudder unbound and 
they sought to beach her. 

10. How did they fare ? 

No one knew the land they were approaching, but they 



89 



sighted a little bay with a sandy beach, and thither they endeav- 
ored to direct their course. This they were unable to do, but 
ran the ship on the shoal of a neck of land that jutted out into 
the water over which two seas met. The fore part of the vessel 
was soon fastened firmly in the mud and slime, and it became at 
once evident that the violence of the waves would shiver her 
to pieces. The soldiers drew their swords to kill the prisoners, 
lest they should escape, but this the centurion, for St. Paul's sake, 
would not permit. He bade all men to make for shore as best 
they might and so, some swimming and some by the aid of 
planks and pieces of wreckage, they all at last reached land safely. 

1Ro» 49 ♦ Qn to IRome^ 

Read Acts xxviii. i to 15. 

1. What island was it upon which the shipwrecked crew had 
landed ? 

They soon discovered from the natives who had gathered 
on the shore to witness the wreck, and may have lent a hand in 
assisting some of the half-drowned passengers to land, that they 
had come to the Island of Malta (then called Melita). 

2. What did they naturally do first ? 

They built a huge fire whereby to warm and dry them- 
selves. St. Paul, with his usual energy, assisted. As he was 
standing near the fire throwing on the wood he had gathered, a 
viper, which had lain torpid in the fagots, revived by the heat, fast- 
ened upon his hand. The superstitious islanders supposed that 
St. Paul was some great criminal who had escaped the sea, but 
not the vengeance of the gods, who were thus punishing him. 
They expected his instant death. 

3. When this did not occur, how were the natives affected ? 
They cried out that St. Paul was himself a god, and would 

have worshipped him. 

4. How was Malta governed in those days ? 

It was part of the Province of Sicily, and it was in charge 
of a subordinate official known as the chief man of the island. 
This man, Publius by name, when he heard of the unfortunate 
voyagers, invited them to his home and entertained them there 
for three days. 



90 



5. What happened in his house ? 

The father of Publius lay sick, at death's door, but the 
prayer of St. Paul saved his life. This miracle attracted consid- 
erable attention in the island, but the Apostles do not seem to 
have been able to win over many of the ignorant and superstitious 
natives to the truth. 

6. How long did they remain in Malta ? 

About three months. This would bring them to the mid- 
dle of February, when, under favorable circumstances, navigation 
might again begin. Another corn ship which had wintered at 
the island, in its anxiety to reach Rome, was about to make the 
experiment. Upon this ship the centurion embarked his company, 

7. How did they fare on this second voyage ? 

A favorable wind from the south carried them safely to 
Syracuse. There they were delayed three days by adverse winds, 
but eventually, by tacking, they succeeded in reaching Rhegium. 

8. Where were they finally landed ? 

With a favorable breeze from the south, they ran north- 
ward in a single day to Puteoli, in the harbor of Naples. Here 
the prisoners were landed, while the corn ship probably continued 
on to Ostia, the port of Rome, there to discharge its freight. At 
Puteoli the centurion rested a week before proceeding to Rome. 
St. Paul discovered a Christian Church already in existence there, 
and he and his companions were kindly received by the brethren. 

9. On their journey to Rome, who met them ? 

As they were travelling along the great Roman thorough- 
fare, known as the Appian Way, and were about forty-three 
miles distant from the city, at a place where the road comes down 
to the sea, nigh to a little fishing village known as Appii forum, 
they were met by a deputation from the Christian Church in 
Rome. Again, about ten miles further on, still another band of 
eager Christians came to greet the great missionary who had 
written them so stirring and helpful a letter. 
10. What effect did this have upon St. Paul ? 

His long voyage and many hardships, together with the 
doubt of what his reception would be in Rome, had somewhat 
broken his spirit, but this enthusiasm revived him and gave him 
new courage. Sometime in March of the year 60, this embassa- 
dor of the King of kings entered, a prisoner, the proud city that 
had conquered the world. 



91 



Bo. 50. Ube IDictor's Crown* 

Read Acts xxviii. 15 to 31. 

1. What was done with St. Paul when Rome was reached ? 
The centurion delivered his prisoner over to his command- 
ing officer, the Stratopedarch, who was in authority over all such 
officers as acted as the Emperor's messengers. 

2. Was St. Paul's imprisonment a severe one ? 

No; he was treated with unusual clemency. Although 
chained to a soldier, he was permitted to dwell in a house of his 
own choosing, to receive visitors, and to preach the Gospel. He 
met with considerable success, as formerly, amongst the Gentiles, 
even many of Caesar's own household believing; but with the 
Jews of Rome he accomplished but little. 

3. How long did St. Paul wait for his trial? 

Nearly two years; why, we know not. He spen^ this in- 
terval in writing letters and controlling the affairs of the churches 
he had founded, by means of his tried and trusty companions, who 
all seemed to have followed him to Rome. 

4. What reconciliation took place at Rome ? 

John Mark there joined St. Paul and was added to his band 
of faithful followers. Him St. Paul sent on a mission to Asia. 
(Col. iv. 10.) 

5. What great letters did St. Paul write during this imprison- 
ment ? 

The letters known to us as Ephesians, Colossians and 
Philemon. The first two had for their object the refutal of cer- 
tain false teachings that were being circulated in Asia. The lat- 
ter was a personal letter in behalf of a poor slave Onesimus, who 
had run away from his master, and of whom St. Paul had made a 
convert. 

6. What letter, written later, tells us about his first trial ? 
The letter known as the Epistle to the Philippians. It was 

occasioned by the generosity of the Church at Philippi, who had 
sent aid to the lonely prisoner at Rome. It is a beautiful letter. 
From it we discover that St. Paul was alone at the time of his 
trial, his companions being absent on various missions. The 
trial had partly taken place when this letter was written, towards 
the end of 61. He had been examined before the Praetorian 
Prefect, the Emperor's representative at such trials; had boldly 



92 



preached the Gospel by God's help even in the Praetorium, the 
supreme court of the Empire; and had little doubt of his ac- 
quittal. 

7. Where did St. Paul go after his release ? 

We have no certain account of his further journeyings, but 
the three or four years that followed were undoubtedly spent by 
him in preaching the Gospel, and founding additional churches. 

8. What awful event happened in Rome in the year 64 ? 
The Emperor Nero, thesesthetic fiend, is supposed to have 

set fire to the city, partly to witness the blaze, and partly to re- 
build Rome after his own pleasure. When he saw the hatred the 
fire with all its attendant misery had aroused, he became terrified, 
and caused the Christians to be accused of having originated it. 
A horrible persecution was the result. 

9. What letter of St. Paul's was perhaps written in the year 65 ? 
The Second Epistle to Timothy. The First to Timothy 

and that to Titus had been written earlier. From this second 
letter, we learn that St. Paul was again a prisoner in Rome, and on 
trial for his life, this time with no hope of acquittal. The first 
charge against him, that probably of being party to the great fire, 
had failed; but he knew that his death was certain on the ground 
then commonly urged against the Christians, of treason to the 
Emperor, in setting up another Kingdom, and worshipping another 
King. 

10. How did St. Paul's life probably end.-* 

For the sake of the Master, for whom he had lived, the 
faithful servant at last laid down his life. As a Roman, he was 
probably beheaded. Thus died the man who had toiled more 
abundantly than all the other Apostles in founding the Kingdom, 
of Christ. He had fought a good fight and finished his course. 
Henceforth there was assuredly laid up for him a crown of right- 
eousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, would give him. 

IRo, 51 ♦ Xast 5)a^s» 

Read Rev. xxi. 

I. What do we know of the after life of St. James, the Lord's 
brother ? 

He was Bishop of the Jerusalem Church until the year 
63, when he too received the martyr's crown. The simplicity of 



93 



his life, his evident sincerity and his devotion to the laws and 
customs of Judaism, which he united with his Christianity, all 
combined to make him much beloved by Jews of every sort, and 
earned for him the title of " The Just." Only the cruel family of 
Annas, ever the enemies of Jesus and His Church, were unmoved 
by his piety, and the High Priest Hanan, after the death of the 
Governor Festus and ere a new Governor had arrived in the 
province, caused St. James to be stoned to death, 

2. What writing have we of this man.? 

The letter known to us as the Epistle of St. James is prob- 
ably his. It is a manly, earnest plea for a religion that shall con- 
sist not in sentiment or theories, but in Christlike deeds. " Pure 
religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit 
the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep one's self 
unspotted from the world." 

3. What do we know of the after life of St. Peter ? 

There is considerable uncertainty as to the last days of this 
Apostle. Some supposed that he perished during the great per- 
secution in Rome under Nero in the year 64; others that God did 
not take him from his labors till perhaps the year 80. The two 
letters known to us as the Epistles of St. Peter seem to accord 
better with the later date, for they were evidently written at a 
period when the being a Christian was of itself considered a crime. 

4. What information have we regarding the other Apostles ? 
With the exception of St. John, nothing is certainly known 

of the labors of these men. They seem soon to have left Jerusa- 
lem and been scattered on various missions, probably to the 
east and south. They are all supposed to have died for their 
Master. Egypt, Parthia, and India perhaps received the Gospel 
from them. 

5. Which one of the Apostles continued to labor on after the 
others had been called to their rest ? 

St. John the Beloved Disciple. He seems to have followed 
St. Paul to Asia and taken up his abode chiefly at Ephesus. There, 
as the world grew lonelier and lonelier, and the companions of his 
youth one by one laid down their tasks and departed to be with 
Christ, this aged friend of Jesus continued to bear testimony to 
another generation of the "Word of Life" which his ears had 
heard, his eyes had seen, and his hands handled. 

6. What persecution did he suffer for his Master's sake ? 



94 



Probably during the reign of Domitian, he was banished to 
the Island of Patmos. There it was that on the Lord's Day, as 
he knelt in prayer, the sound of the waves lapping the shore 
melted into a voice of exquisite beauty, the voice he most longed 
to hear, and Jesus was with him and unfolded to him that sad yet 
lovely vision which he has recorded for us in the Book of Reve- 
lation. 

7. What other writings have we of St. John ? 

It would seem as if, as the years passed by and the world 
grew stranger to him, his eyes were opened to see more clearly 
into the meaning of Christ's life. He wrote the story of the life 
of Jesus as no one else has written it, in calm but confident words 
asserting all that he knows Christ can be to those who love Him. 
We have also some letters of his in which the Gospel is reduced to 
the simple commandment, " Little children of the one God, love 
one another." 

8. What important event happened in the year 70 ? 
Jerusalem was besieged and taken by the Romans, and the 

Temple was destroyed. Later, in the year 120, the city was 
utterly annihilated and a Roman colony planted upon its ruins. 
Thu the Emperors hoped to destroy the two faiths that stood 
forth as rivals to the national religion of the Empire, Judaism 
and Christianity, by destroying the city whence they originated. 

9. What effect had this upon Christianity ? 

On the whole, Christianity was benefited by the destruction 
of the Holy City, for thereby it was released finally from those 
fetters of Judaism against which St. Stephen and St. Paul had so 
bravely struggled, and could set forth untrammelled to conquer 
the world. 

10. Is the world yet conquered for Christ ? 

No; there is much still to be done ere "The kingdoms of 
this world shall become the kingdoms of our God and of His 
Christ." God still needs brave men and women who will give 
up all for the Master's sake, and follow where the saints have so 
nobly led the way. 



95 



1. Why did the Tribune Lysias transfer St. Paul to Caesarea? 

2. Tell the story of his trial before Felix. 

3. Why did St. Paul appeal to C^sar ? 

4. What speech did he make in the presence of King Agrippa ? 

5. Trace the Apostle's voyage until Fair Havens was reached. 

6. Tell the story of the shipwreck. 

7. What events happened at Malta? 

8. What do we know of St. Paul's two trials at Rome? 

9. Tell all you know of the last days of the other Apostles. 
10. What consequences did the destruction of Jerusalem have 

for Christianity ? 



FOUNDING OF THE KINGDOM 



A COURSE OF LESSONS FOR ADVANCED SCHOLARS ON THE 
ACTS OF THE APOSTLES. 



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SECOND EDITION, REVISED 



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SECOND EDITION, REVISED. 

THE FOUNDING OF THE KINGDOM 



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— BY — 

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Author of Lessons on the Life of the King." 



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